Jair Bolsonaro dismissed a total of six ministers, including the heads of the foreign relations, defense and justice portfolios

The President of Brazil, Jair Bolsonaro, proceeded Monday to a profound ministerial reform, with the change of head of six portfolios, including those of external relations, defense and justice, as announced by the Ministry of Communications.

The changes started in the morning, with the resignation of the Chancellor, Ernesto Araújo, under fire for Brazil’s failed policy to contain the coronavirus pandemic, and it was expanded in the afternoon with unforeseen changes.

Reserve General Fernando Azevedo e Silva, unexpectedly announced his resignation from his post as Minister of Defensehours after Foreign Minister Ernesto Araújo communicated to President Jair Bolsonaro his decision to leave his post.

Added to that of General Eduardo Pazuello at the head of the Ministry of Health two weeks ago, He is the third victim of a key member of the far-right government in the most acute phase of the coronavirus pandemic.

“Agradezco al Presidente de la República, a quien dediqué mi total lealtad a lo largo de estos más de dos años, por la oportunidad de haber servido al país como ministro de Estado de la Defensa”, escribió Azevedo e Silva en una nota divulada a the press.

“I am leaving with the certainty of the mission accomplished,” added the 67-year-old soldier. without specifying whether it was a resignation or a dismissal.

Azevedo e Silva had been in the cabinet since Bolsonaro came to power in January 2019, and was one of eight ministers (out of 22) with a military rank.

The two government losses follow the replacement, on the 22nd, of General Eduardo Pazuello as Minister of Health, replaced by cardiologist Marcelo Queiroga in a context of accelerating health crisis caused by COVID-19, which has already killed more than 312,000 people in the country.

In the case of Pazuello, the third Minister of Health owned by the Bolsonaro government since the outbreak of the pandemic in the country, His departure was the product of strong pressure from the more moderate right, critical of his erratic management of the health crisis, which is even the subject of a judicial inquiry.

The reasons for Araújo’s departure are similar, while the case of General Azevedo e Silva is unclear. Araújo’s resignation was confirmed by sources in the government, Congress and his own office, But a few hours later, Bolsonaro still has not said a word about it, neither to confirm nor to deny the departure of the Minister of Foreign Affairs..

Despite this, the resignation of the Minister of Foreign Affairs was called by many parliamentarians, even from the official base, who accused Araújo of having created friction with important partners in Brazil, all of this would have prevented the country from accessing COVID-19 vaccines.

The departure of Araújo it was publicly requested even by the head of the Senate, Rodrigo Pacheco, and Senator Katia Abreu, president of the External Relations Commission of the Upper House, who led a choir made up of leaders from both legislative chambers, both the opposition and the ruling party.

The discomfort was based on the criticisms of the Minister of Foreign Affairs of China, the United States and India, after key countries on the international scene, important trading partners of the country.

In the case of China, Araujo had direct friction with the Beijing ambassador to Brazil after questioning the effectiveness of vaccines manufactured in this country and referring to the origin of the virus, detected for the first time in the Chinese city of Wuhan.

The best placed to fill the post left by Araújo are the ambassadors of the United States, Nestor Foster, and of France, Luis Fernando Serra. In recent days, the names of Communication Secretary Admiral Flávio Rocha and even former Brazilian President Fernando Collor (1990-1992) have also been mixed up.

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