Lava Jato case: On the first day of January, Luiz Inácio Lula da Silva took oath as Brazil’s President. He replaced Jair Bolsonaro in the closest election in Brazil’s history. The victory of Jair Bolsonaro in 2018 was widely seen as a reaction to the corruption scandals that had rocked the country in recent years.
But, as the facts come, it wasn’t just the corruption scandal that led to Bolsonaro’s ascend to Brazil’s presidency. CIA had a big role to play in it.
CIA scripted Lula’s demise
The Operation Car Wash scandal, or Lava Jato in Portuguese, caused a major upheaval in Brazil’s political and corporate world. It resulted in the arrest of current president Luis Inácio Lula da Silva, which effectively ended his chances of being re-elected and enabled far-right Jair Bolsonaro’s victory in 2018.
Lula spent 580 days in prison. However, in 2019 and 2021, The Intercept Brasil released confidential messages between the judge and prosecutors of the Lava Jato case.
“I’m going to celebrate today.”— Laura Tessler
“A gift from the CIA.”— Deltan Dallagnol
Leaked conversations between prosecutors Tessler and Dallagnol and Judge Sergio Moro have caused tremendous shock among those watching the situation closely.
It indicated that the then-judge Sérgio Moro and prosecutors from the Car Wash investigation had worked together to ensure the conviction of former president Luiz Inácio Lula da Silva for corruption and money laundering. It also showed the interference of CIA in Brazil’s politics.
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Then, in 2021, Brazil’s Supreme Court determined that ex-judge Sergio Moro had been biased in managing ex-President Luiz Inácio Lula da Silva’s corruption trial. It validated the long-standing position of the left-wing leader that he was the target of political persecution.
The decision cleared the way for Lula to fight 2022 elections against Bolsonaro.
Sergio Moro and CIA
After Lula was disqualified to fight in elections, Bolsonaro was elected as the President of Brazil. Sergio Moro, the judge who looked after Lava Jato was appointed as Bolsonaro’s Justice Minister.
When Bolsonaro and Moro visited US, both made an unprecedented trip to the CIA. It was unusual for a foreign president to visit the CIA office, which goes against diplomatic protocol. After the visit, Bolsonaro expressed admiration for the CIA, tweeting that it is one of the most respected intelligence agencies in the world. In July 2021, the CIA director visited Brasilia and held talks with Bolsonaro.
Indo agora com o PR @jairbolsonaroe ministros para a CIA, uma das agências de inteligência mais respeitadas do mundo. Será uma excelente oportunidade de conversar sobre temas internacionais da região com técnicos e peritos do mais alto gabarito.
— Eduardo Bolsonaro🇧🇷 (@BolsonaroSP) March 18, 2019
Since the election, the FBI has expanded its presence in Brazil, working both legally and illegally with the Lava Jato task force. Leslie Backschies, the head of the FBI’s international corruption unit, has even bragged about helping to “overthrow Presidents in Brazil“.
Why does US hates Lula?
Therefore, the US government assisted Bolsonaro in defeating Lula da Silva. Lula is seen by them as a challenge to their interests. Lula fought against the US’ dominance in Latin America and worked with other Latin American leaders like Hugo Chavez and Cristina Kirchner to prevent the formation of the Free Trade Area of the Americas (FTAA) at the Mar del Plata Summit of the Americas in 2005.
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Lula attempted to reinstate Manuel Zelaya as president of Honduras after he had been deposed in a US-backed coup in 2009. He also worked to bring Latin America closer together through the formation of CELAC and UNASUR, hoping to create a collective strength that could oppose US domination. He sought to build a multipolar world, in opposition to US unilateralism, and raised Brazil’s prominence in the region and beyond.
Therefore, American intelligence and security agencies collaborated with the Brazilian judge Sergio Moro to incriminate Lula in the Lava Jato corruption scandal. It prevented Lula from running in the 2018 election, for which Moro was rewarded with the post of justice minister by Bolsonaro.