According to Reuters, on October 2nd, local time, the United States suspended consular services at its embassies and consulates in Brazil due to 'security concerns'.
Due to security considerations, the U.S. Embassies and Consulates in Brazil will suspend consular services starting from Friday, October 2nd. U.S. citizens who require emergency assistance should not visit the U.S. Embassies, Consulates, or other U.S. diplomatic agencies during this period, said the U.S. State Department in a statement.
The US State Department did not provide further details about the specific security issues involved, nor did it link the suspension of consular services to the Brazilian presidential election. The statement did not indicate when consular services would be resumed.
The first round of voting for the Brazilian elections will take place on October 4th. Violent crime has always been one of the top concerns of Brazilian voters, which has led candidates to promise more stringent law enforcement measures during the election campaign.
On the other hand, Brazilian President Luiz Inácio Lula has repeatedly warned that this election could be interfered with by external forces.
The British newspaper The Guardian recently revealed that the US State Department’s "Human Rights and Democracy Fund" intends to allocate $1 million for a project called "Opposition to Brazilian Laws and Censorship", to support civil groups that oppose alleged "judicial overreach" and "censorship" by the Brazilian Federal Supreme Court.
On October 1st, local time, the Brazilian Federal Public Prosecution Service asked the Brazilian Federal Police and the Federal Public Prosecution Office to conduct an investigation to determine whether the US government had interfered in Brazilian elections by providing funding to Brazilian civil groups, thereby undermining the legitimacy of the Brazilian Federal Supreme Court.
Brazilian Federal Attorney General Secretary Jorge Meisias stated that the related reports are a 'major warning to Brazil's sovereignty'. He said that in the context of upcoming presidential elections in Brazil, such information is particularly serious. It is unacceptable for foreign political interests to attempt to interfere with the operations of Brazilian state institutions or to directly or indirectly influence the choices of Brazilian voters.
