“Israel is a sovereign state and we shall duly respect that”

Jair M. Bolsonaro, the President-elect of Brazil and frequently referred to as the “Brazilian Trump,” had promised during the campaign to move Brazil’s embassy in Israel from Tel Aviv to Israel’s capital, Jerusalem. This was consistent with his strong pro-Israel stance.

There was speculation that he would back off the promise, as had numerous U.S. Presidents prior to Donald Trump.

But like Trump, this may be a promise to be kept.

Bolsonaro took to Twitter to day to declare:

As previously stated during our campaign, we intend to transfer the Brazilian Embassy from Tel-Aviv to Jerusalem. Israel is a sovereign state and we shall duly respect that.

This comes just a day after Bolsanaro announced he would close the Palestinian Embassy in Brazil:

“Is Palestine a country? Palestine is not a country, so there should be no embassy here,” said Bolsonaro recently. “You do not negotiate with terrorists.”

Bibi Netanyahu, plans to attend Bolsonaro’s inauguration, is happy:

Prime Minister Netanyahu: "I congratulate my friend Brazilian President-Elect, Jair Bolsonaro, for his intention to move the Brazilian Embassy to Jerusalem, a historic, correct and exciting step!" — PM of Israel (@IsraeliPM) November 1, 2018

If Brazil does in fact move the Embassy, it will be a huge blow to the Palestinian rejectionists, and will embolden other countries.

Look for Palestinians to threaten Brazil, and to demand that Muslim nations do the same. When that doesn’t happen, peace will have taken a step forward.



