Brazilian Foreign Minister Mauro Vieira said Argentina must stop its attacks on President Luiz Inácio Lula da Silva and Brazilian institutions before the two countries can restore normal diplomatic relations.
In an interview with Argentina’s Clarín newspaper, Vieira said bilateral ties had been downgraded because President Javier Milei had repeatedly attacked not only Lula, but also Brazil, its institutions, its branches of government and Supreme Federal Court (STF) Justice Alexandre de Moraes.
"This type of aggression must stop immediately so that we can work on a bilateral relationship that is so important," Vieira said, according to Clarín and Folha de S.Paulo.
A Diplomatic Downgrade
Brazil’s Foreign Ministry, known as Itamaraty, informed Argentina’s ambassador to Brazil, Guillermo Daniel Raimondi, that he could return to Buenos Aires. Brasília will conduct official dealings with Argentina through the country’s chargé d’affaires, a lower-ranking diplomatic representative.
Raimondi’s departure was scheduled for Sunday, August 9. Brazil’s ambassador to Argentina, Julio Bitelli, will remain in Brazil. The arrangement represents the most serious bilateral crisis between the neighboring countries in decades, according to Folha’s single-source reporting.
The dispute began in late July, when Milei addressed the launch of the candidacy of Flávio Bolsonaro, a leader of Brazil’s opposition Liberal Party (PL), in São Paulo. Milei called Lula a thief and a former prisoner. He also insulted Moraes, who had blocked the Argentine president from visiting former Brazilian President Jair Bolsonaro while Bolsonaro was under house arrest in Brasília.
Milei renewed his criticism in a televised interview on August 2. He accused Lula of interfering politically in the region and described him as a corrupt and convicted politician. Milei also criticized Moraes for refusing the visit to Bolsonaro.
Conflicting Claims
Vieira rejected Milei’s accusation that Brazil was financing an international campaign against Argentina, calling it "completely false." He also disputed Milei’s description of Lula’s economic model as communist, pointing to Brazil’s open economy, foreign trade and international reserves.
The foreign minister said Argentina’s inflation and unemployment rates were higher than Brazil’s and that Argentina held fewer international reserves. The interview did not provide figures for the comparison.
Vieira also addressed a separate dispute with the United States. He said Washington’s suspension of the visa of Brazilian Ambassador Maria Luiza Viotti was intended to pressure Brasília to approve Daniel Perez as the next U.S. ambassador. The administration of President Donald Trump has described the measure as reciprocal, arguing that Brazil had not granted approval for Perez’s appointment.
Vieira said the Vienna Convention establishes no deadline for accepting an ambassador and that Brazil had not yet sent the nomination to Lula because the president was occupied with preparations two months before Brazil’s elections.