Netanyahu and Bolsonaro
Netanyahu and BolsonaroAvi Ohayon/GPO

Prime Minister Binyamin Netanyahu met on Friday in Rio de Janeiro with Brazil's President-elect, Jair Bolsonaro.

During the meeting, Netanyahu invited Bolsonaro to visit Israel.

After the meeting, Netanyahu said, "This is a historic visit, the first time an Israeli prime minister has visited Brazil. We are forging a big alliance here with a huge power of nearly a quarter billion people, which is opening a new page with us, with cooperation that will help citizens of both countries in economy, technology and security."

Netanyahu’s visit centers on the inauguration of Jair Bolsonaro as Brazil’s new president on January 1 in the country’s capital city, Brasilia.

Bolsonaro, who has been dubbed the “Trump of Brazil”, announced after his election that he intended to uphold his campaign promise and move the Brazilian embassy to Jerusalem.

Netanyahu later hailed Bolsonaro's announcement. Arab leaders, however, have condemned the move and have pressured Bolsonaro not to go through with it.

The Arab League recently warned Bolsonaro that moving his country’s embassy in Israel to Jerusalem would be a setback for relations with Arab countries.

(Arutz Sheva’s North American desk is keeping you updated until the start of Shabbat in New York. The time posted automatically on all Arutz Sheva articles, however, is Israeli time.)