President Donald Trump said on Tuesday that he will work to designate Brazil a<\/b>
\nWASHINGTON \u2014 President Donald Trump said on Tuesday that he will work to designate Brazil a \u00ab\u00a0major non-NATO ally\u00a0\u00bb \u2014 and maybe even full NATO membership \u2014 as he welcomed the country’s new Trump-friendly leader to the White House. That’s despite the fact that Brazil doesn’t quality to join the North Atlantic alliance.
Jair Bolsonaro, who’s been described as the \u00ab\u00a0Trump of the Tropics,\u00a0\u00bb ran on an unabashedly pro-American platform, emulating Trump in tone and in style. It’s a position that seemed to pay off for the leader on his first official trip to Washington.
As they sat down for the first time, Trump praised Bolsonaro, saying he’d done \u00ab\u00a0a very outstanding job\u00a0\u00bb so far and hailed his run as \u00ab\u00a0one of the incredible campaigns.\u00a0\u00bb Trump said he was \u00ab\u00a0honored\u00a0\u00bb Bolsonaro’s campaign had drawn comparisons with his own 2016 victory. And he predicted the two would have a \u00ab\u00a0fantastic working relationship,\u00a0\u00bb telling reporters at a joint press conference that they have \u00ab\u00a0many views\u00a0\u00bb in common. The two also exchanged soccer jerseys in a sign of friendship.
Bolsonaro has made clear he wants to strengthen military and economic ties with the U. S., and Trump appeared eager to deliver, announcing that he would back Brazil’s effort’s to join the Organisation for Economic Co-operation and Development.
Trump also told reporters he intends to designate Brazil as \u00ab\u00a0a major non-NATO ally\u00a0\u00bb or \u00ab\u00a0even, possibly, if you start thinking about it, maybe a NATO ally,\u00a0\u00bb though he said he’d \u00ab\u00a0have to talk to a lot of people\u00a0\u00bb for Brazil to join the organization.
Brazil, the largest and most populous nation in Latin America, has pursued becoming a non-NATO ally to make it easier to buy U. S. weapons and lower barriers for military and other cooperation.
But James Stavridis, a retired Navy admiral who was the Supreme Allied Commander at NATO from 2009 to 2013, said Brazil does not qualify for full membership under the North Atlantic Treaty of 1949.
\u00ab\u00a0The idea of formal membership is a nonstarter in every dimension \u2014 the treaty doesn’t allow it, the Brazilians wouldn’t want it and the Europeans wouldn’t approve,\u00a0\u00bb Stavridis said in an email exchange.
NATO’s own membership policy says it is open only to any \u00ab\u00a0European state\u00a0\u00bb that is \u00ab\u00a0in a position to further the principles of this treaty and to contribute to the security of the North Atlantic area.\u00a0\u00bb
Bolsonaro has much in common with Trump. He, too, ran an insurgent, social media-powered campaign. And like Trump, he has blasted unflattering stories as \u00ab\u00a0fake news\u00a0\u00bb and used Twitter and Facebook to bypass mainstream news organizations.
Standing side-by-side in the White House Rose Garden, Bolsonaro told Trump the U. S. and Brazil stand together in support of \u00ab\u00a0liberties,\u00a0\u00bb including \u00ab\u00a0traditional family lifestyle,\u00a0\u00bb and \u00ab\u00a0against the gender ideology or the politically incorrect attitudes and against fake news.\u00a0\u00bb
\u00ab\u00a0I’m very proud to hear the president use the term ‘fake news’,\u00a0\u00bb Trump later remarked.
As a congressman, Bolsonaro frequently made disparaging comments about gays, women, indigenous groups and blacks, and he has praised torture and killings by police and waxed nostalgic for Brazil’s old military dictatorship. While such comments have drawn sharp criticism, they have also generated attention and fed into his narrative as a leader unencumbered by political correctness.
Bolsonaro has also echoed Trump’s hardline immigration policies, calling immigrants from several poor countries the \u00ab\u00a0scum of the world\u00a0\u00bb and saying Brazil cannot become a \u00ab\u00a0country of open borders.\u00a0\u00bb
In an interview with Fox News Monday, Bolsonaro said he supported Trump’s immigration policies and his efforts to build a wall along the U. S.-Mexico border.
\u00ab\u00a0The majority of potential immigrants do not have good intentions or do not intend to do the best or do good for the American people,\u00a0\u00bb he said.
The two leaders were expected to discuss a range of issues during their visit, including expanding trade relations, increasing U. S. private-sector investment in Brazil and resolving the ongoing political crisis in Venezuela. Both are fierce critics of Venezuela’s socialist President Nicolas Maduro.
In advance of the meeting, the countries signed several bilateral agreements, including one that allows the United States to use Brazil’s Alcantara Aerospace Launch Base for its satellites. Brazil also announced an end to visa requirements for U. S. tourists who visit the country, while Trump agreed to Brazilian participation in the Trusted Traveler \u00ab\u00a0Global Entry\u00a0\u00bb program.
Days after taking office on Jan. 1, Bolsonaro, a former army captain, said Brazil would consider letting the U. S. have a military base in the country as way to counter Russian influence in the region, particularly related to Brazil’s neighbor Venezuela.
That statement was roundly criticized, including by former military members of his government, and the administration backed off.
Bolsonaro, who has routinely expressed his admiration for Trump and frequently says closer U. S. ties are key to Brazil’s future, sought to underscore his pro-America stance throughout his visit.
\u00ab\u00a0For the first time in a while, a pro-America Brazilian president arrives in DC,\u00a0\u00bb he tweeted after arriving on Monday. \u00ab\u00a0It’s the beginning of a partnership focused on liberty and prosperity, something that all of us Brazilians have long wished for.\u00a0\u00bb
Bolsonaro succeeded a leftist who at times had a frosty relationship with the United States. In 2013, leaks from Edward Snowden revealed that the National Security Agency had wiretapped conversations of former President Dilma Rousseff, leading to several years of tense relations between the U. S. and Brazil.
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Prengaman reported from Rio de Janeiro. Associated Press writers Mauricio Savarese in Madrid and Ben Fox, Robert Burns, Matthew Lee, Catherine Lucey and Darlene Superville in Washington contributed to this report.<\/p>\n