© Reuters. FILE PHOTO: Brazil’s President Luiz Inacio Lula da Silva addresses the opening of the thirty seventh Extraordinary Session of the Meeting of the African Union on the African Union Headquarters, in Addis Ababa, Ethiopia February 17, 2024. REUTERS/Stringer//File Photograph
By Simon Lewis
BRASILIA (Reuters) – U.S. prime diplomat Antony Blinken was assembly President Luiz Inacio Lula da Silva on Wednesday, amid a diplomatic spat after the Brazilian chief likened Israel’s battle in Gaza to the Nazi genocide throughout World Warfare Two.
U.S. officers have mentioned they anticipate Lula and Secretary of State Blinken to have a sturdy dialog on points of world safety, together with the battle in Gaza sparked by assaults in southern Israel by Hamas militants on Oct. 7.
Israel mentioned on Monday that Lula shouldn’t be welcome in Israel till he takes again the feedback.
State Division spokesperson Matthew Miller mentioned on Tuesday that Washington disagreed with Lula’s feedback, however declined to preview what Blinken would say within the assembly on the problem.
Lula’s feedback got here after he visited the Center East final week and simply forward of a gathering of international ministers in Rio de Janeiro as a part of Brazil’s presidency of the G20 group of superior economies.
Washington, which supplies Israel with navy and diplomatic assist, has urged Israel to guard civilians however defended Israel’s proper to focus on Hamas militants within the Gaza strip.
Forward of Blinken’s journey to South America, Assistant Secretary of State for Western Hemisphere Affairs Brian Nichols informed reporters that sharing concepts on the battle in Gaza could be “essential to the dialog” between Lula and Blinken.
The 2 would additionally talk about efforts to advertise democracy in Venezuela, a U.S.-Brazil partnership on staff’ rights and cooperation on transitioning to scrub power, Nichols mentioned.