MercoPress. South Atlantic News Agency

Brazil downgrades diplomatic mission in Tel Aviv

“We cannot remain silent in the face of aberrations,” Lula said during the weekend about Israel's deployment in Gaza

The government of Brazilian President Luiz Inácio Lula da Silva announced on Wednesday the transfer of Ambassador Frederico Meyer from Tel Aviv to Geneva to head the mission before the United Nations (UN) Conference on Disarmament, Agencia Brasil reported. According to the Diário Oficial da Uniao, a replacement has not been sent to Israel.

Bruno Fabricio Alcebino da Silva, a researcher at the Federal University of the ABC's Observatory of Brazilian Foreign Policy (OPEB) believes that removing the ambassador from Israel was “clearly political” because it reduced the importance of the South American country's representation. “This sends a strong message about the level of priority that the Lula government attaches to the relationship with the current Israeli government,” the expert stressed. “Although it doesn't completely sever diplomatic ties, this move highlights Brazil's dissatisfaction with Israel's policies,” he added.

“Replacing the ambassador with a chargé d'affaires is a diplomatic sign of discontent and disapproval, reflecting a deliberate strategy to make a point on the international stage,” he went on.

Lula has been criticizing Israel's actions under Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu in Gaza. “I would like to ask for solidarity with the women and children who are dying in Palestine because of the irresponsibility of the Israeli government. We cannot remain silent in the face of aberrations,” he said last Saturday at an event in Guarulhos, Sao Paulo. On Monday, Brazil's Foreign Ministry said Israel's actions in Gaza systematically violated human rights.

Last week, the International Criminal Court (ICC) chief prosecutor called for Netanyahu's arrest for war crimes, including the use of hunger as a weapon of war. The Israeli government denied the allegations saying it had taken action to protect civilians.

In February this year, Ambassador Frederico Meyer was recalled to Brasilia after the Israeli government summoned him following Lula's likening of the military deployment in Gaza to that of Adolf Hitler in World War II.

Brazil's Foreign Ministry issued a statement Wednesday welcoming Spain, Ireland, and Norway's decision to officially recognize Palestine's statehood on May 28, thus joining over 140 countries to have adopted such a stance, which Brazil did in 2010.

“The growing number of countries that recognize the State of Palestine is a notable historical advance that contributes to responding to the people's yearnings for peace, freedom, and self-determination,” said Itamaraty.

“Brazil reaffirms its defense of the two-state solution, with an independent and viable State of Palestine living side by side with Israel, in peace and security, within the 1967 borders, which includes the Gaza Strip and the West Bank, with East Jerusalem as its capital,” it added.