Brazil Could Join the U.S.-Led 'Shield of the Americas' Against Cartels if Flávio Bolsonaro Wins Sunday's Runoff, His Brother Says
Eduardo Bolsonaro told Fox News Digital a win would bring Brazil into the security coalition Lula has stayed out of. The runoff against Lula is Oct. 25.
Brazil could join the U.S.-led effort against drug cartels if conservative candidate Flávio Bolsonaro wins the country's Oct. 25 runoff, his brother Eduardo Bolsonaro told Fox News Digital in an exclusive interview.
The coalition. The effort is called the Shield of the Americas. Fox says it aims to widen security cooperation across the Western Hemisphere through intelligence sharing, military coordination and joint work to disrupt cartel financing. It follows the Trump administration's February 2025 decision to name eight criminal groups both Foreign Terrorist Organizations and Specially Designated Global Terrorists: Tren de Aragua, MS-13, the Sinaloa Cartel, the Jalisco New Generation Cartel, the Northeast Cartel, the Gulf Cartel, La Nueva Familia Michoacana and Carteles Unidos.
Who is in. Fox lists Argentina, El Salvador and Peru as participants, and says Ecuador, Panama, Paraguay and Chile have also taken part, according to the State Department. Brazil has not joined under President Luiz Inácio Lula da Silva, who is on the left.
What Eduardo Bolsonaro says. "The main thing that we need to do is fight the cartels," he said. "They work together in a lot of countries, so we should fight back then." He said that under his brother, working with President Trump through the Shield of the Americas would give Brazil "the opportunity for the first time" to act together with the U.S. against them.
The race. Flávio Bolsonaro led Lula in the first round, and the two meet in Sunday's runoff. Fox says he has promised closer security ties with the U.S. and other conservative governments in the region. Brazil joining would add a large South American presence, where groups such as Primeiro Comando da Capital and Comando Vermelho are major forces in the drug trade.
The U.S. link. U.S. officials have tied cartel activity to fentanyl and other drugs reaching the country, and Fox notes Sen. Tom Cotton, R-Ark., has blamed cartel-linked overdoses for hundreds of thousands of American deaths.
Note for readers: the claim about Brazil's plans comes from the candidate's brother, not from the candidate or a government. The report includes no reply from Lula's campaign, and the vote has not happened. Our earlier coverage of Brazil's election count is a separate story.