Brazil’s President-elect, Jair Bolsonaro, on Thursday night tweeted that he was looking forward to the visit of Prime Minister Binyamin Netanyahu.
“I look forward to the arrival and visit of Prime Minister Netanyahu. We will meet and discuss new directions for our nations. Expectations are the best for this unprecedented moment in our history,” he wrote.
In a separate tweet, Bolsonaro added, “Israel is a technological superpower and that interests us. There is no reason to criticize the dialogue between us, especially when it comes from those who have done nothing but robbed the country. We want the best for Brazil and for the Brazilian population!”
Netanyahu left for Brazil earlier on Thursday, where he will attend Bolsonaro’s inauguration, and will also meet with him and with the country’s defense and foreign ministers.
“We will discuss Israel's ties with the largest country in Latin America, the fifth most populous country in the world. Brazil is a huge country with huge potential for the State of Israel, economically, diplomatically and vis-à-vis security,” tweeted Netanyahu.
“It is a great change that [President-elect] Bolsonaro has declared and I am pleased that we can begin a new era between Israel and the major power called Brazil,” he added.
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.