Trump and Bolsonaro: US president lavishes praise on far-right leader and says he wants Brazil to join Nato

Two leaders express mutual admiration during Rose Garden press conference

Donald Trump has said he is “looking very strongly” at granting Nato privileges to Brazil under its leader Jair Bolsonaro – a show of support for the right-wing president who has stirred controversy at home and abroad.

The president welcomed Mr Bolsonaro, dubbed the “Trump of the Tropics”, to the White House on Tuesday, where they exchanged football tops in a chummy display, before Mr Trump was asked whether the US would consider granting Brazil Nato privileges.

“We’re looking at it very strongly,” he said at the joint press conference. “We’re very inclined to do that.”

Mr Trump did not specify exactly what kind of privileges Brazil would be granted, but did say the White House will “look at it very very strongly in terms whether it’s Nato or it’s something having to do with the alliance”.

He added that the US had a “great alliance with Brazil – better than we’ve ever had before”.

The president said he had a strong rapport with Brazil under Mr Bolsonaro’s leadership.

“The relationship we have right now with Brazil has never been better,” he added. “I think there was a lot of hostility with other presidents. There is zero hostility with me.”

Standing side-by-side in the White House Rose Garden, Mr Bolsonaro said their two countries “stand side by side in their efforts to ensure liberties and respect to traditional family lifestyles, respect to God, our Creator, against the gender ideology or the politically correct attitudes and against fake news.”

“I'm very proud to hear the president use the term 'fake news',” Trump later remarked.

If Brazil is granted “major non-Nato ally” (MNNA) status it will give the Latin American country preferential access to the market for US military equipment and technology.

Currently, only 17 countries have MNNA status. Brazil could become the second Latin American country to join the group after Argentina received its designation in 1998. In 2018, Colombia became a Nato partner, allowing Colombian military forces to be involved in Nato exercises and activities.

Brazilian officials have been negotiating for an MNNA designation since the start of 2019.

Mr Bolsonaro assumed his role as Brazilian president on 1 January. A fan of Mr Trump, the far-right leader has been criticised for making sexist, racist, and homophobic statements.

He has also echoed his US counterpart's hardline immigration policies, calling immigrants from several poor countries the "scum of the world" and saying Brazil cannot become a "country of open borders."

Throughout his presidential election, Mr Bolsonaro made numerous pro-Trump comments on the campaign trail and in his tweets.

Mr Trump’s national security advisor John Bolton also praised Mr Bolsonaro. He told Globo, a Brazilian news organisation, that “up here, maybe we’ll call President Trump the Bolsonaro of North America”.

On the eve of their meeting at the White House, Mr Bolsonaro had praised Mr Trump’s immigration policies and his demand for a wall on the US-Mexico border. He also waived a visa requirement for US visitors to Brazil

“We do agree with President Trump’s decision or proposal on the wall,” Mr Bolsonaro told Fox News. “The vast majority of potential immigrants do not have good intentions. They do not intend to do the best or do good to the US people.”