Brazil Allows Iranian Warships To Dock In Rio Despite US Pressure
Two Iranian warships docked in Rio de Janeiro on Sunday the government granted permission despite pressure from the United States to bar them.
Two Iranian warships docked in Rio de Janeiro on Sunday the government granted permission despite pressure from the United States to bar them.
The IRIS Makran and IRIS Dena warships both arrived on Sunday morning, Rio's port authority said in a statement.
Reuters earlier this month reported that Brazil had bowed to US pressure and declined Iran's request for the vessels to dock in Rio in late January, in a gesture from Brazilian President Luiz Inacio Lula da Silva as he flew to Washington to meet US President Joe Biden.
However, with Lula's trip over, the ships have been allowed to dock. Vice Admiral Carlos Eduardo Horta Arentz, the deputy chief of Brazil's Naval Staff, gave his approval for the ships to dock in Rio between February 26 and March 4.
The presence of the Iranian warships on Brazilian shores continues to irk the United States as it seeks to build closer ties with Lula's administration, which came into office on January 1.
In a February 15 press conference, US Ambassador Elizabeth Bagley urged Brazil not to allow the ships to dock.
"In the past, those ships facilitated illegal trade and terrorist activities, and have also been sanctioned by the United States. Brazil is a sovereign nation, but we firmly believe those ships should not dock anywhere," she said.
Diplomacy with Iran was one of the highlights of Lula's attempts to bolster Brazil's international standing during his previous presidential terms. He traveled to Tehran to meet then-President Mahmoud Ahmadinejad in 2010 as he sought to broker a nuclear deal between Iran and the United States.
