MercoPress. South Atlantic News Agency

Brazil's Foreign Ministry locks Russian trip documents under seal

The classified documents may not be opened before Feb. 21, 2027

Brazil's Foreign Ministry has decided to place under the seal of secrecy all documents regarding President Jair Bolsonaro's trip to Moscow in February this year, the Itamaraty Palace announced Tuesday.

The decision is valid for five years, meaning those records cannot be opened before Feb. 21, 2027

The files are said to contain documents regarding expenses and other information about Bolsonaro's journey shortly before Russia invaded Ukraine and which included Rio de Janeiro Councilman Carlos Bolsonaro in the presidential delegation.

The Foreign Ministry adopted the measure following requests from opposition parties which requested in a letter those documents be made public and posed questions about agenda details, members of the presidential entourage and issues dealt with in conversations with Russian officials.

Among the 15 questions, the PSol caucus in the House of Representatives questioned the Itamaraty Palace about the content of the conversation between Bolsonaro and Vladimir Putin.

The parliamentarians asked for details about possible mentions of the conflict between Russia, Ukraine, and the North Atlantic Treaty Organization (NATO), as well as to point out whose initiative it was and what tone the subject was given.

Also requested was an evaluation of Bolsonaro's speech during a visit to Hungary, “insinuating that his visit to Russia would be related to the withdrawal of Russian troops from the vicinity of Ukraine.”

Itamaraty responded that commenting on statements by the president “falls outside the institutional competence of the MRE.”

The ministry also guaranteed it had incurred no expenses regarding Carlos Bolsonaro. “The designation of the entourage is the competence of the Presidency of the Republic.”

The PSol also asked if there were meetings with representatives of the messaging application Telegram or if any of its shareholders had participated in meetings between Bolsonaro and Putin.

The party also questioned whether social issues such as rights of the LGBTQIA+ community, reproductive rights, protection of the family, or religious freedom were part of the topics addressed between the leaders.

To both questions, Itamaraty said that the topics were not included in the record made in Press Release No. 24, published on February 16, with the title ”Joint Communiqué of the President of the Federative Republic of Brazil, Jair Messias Bolsonaro, and the President of the Russian Federation, Vladimir Putin.