Brazilian President Jair Bolsonaro said on Monday his government was close to a deal with Russia to supply cheaper diesel, which if realized would be a tangible benefit of the friendly relationship he seeks to maintain with Russian President Vladimir Putin.
The far-right head of state did not provide further details. Neither Mr. Bolsonaro’s office nor Brazil’s energy ministry immediately responded when Reuters asked them to comment on the announcement.
“It is logical and it could possibly be done,” said an official of the Ministry of Economy on condition of anonymity. He refrained from going into details.
A senior executive at Petroleo Brasileiro SA – or Petrobras – the state-owned company that supplies most of the fuel consumed in Latin America’s biggest economy, told Reuters the idea did not surprise him but raised concerns, also declining to elaborate. .
High fuel prices are among the factors hurting the popularity of Mr Bolsonaro, who is seeking re-election to office in October. The center-left former president Luiz Inacio Lula da Silva is a big favorite in the polls.
It is unclear how Brazil could source diesel from Russia without violating Western sanctions imposed on Moscow over its military invasion of Ukraine.
President Bolsonaro defied US advances and met with his Russian counterpart Putin days before the war broke out on February 24. He has since asserted that his personal relationship with Mr. Putin has allowed Brazil to retain access to Russian fertilizer, a key raw material for his country’s giant agri-food sector.
SOURCE: AMPE
Source: Capital
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