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Eduardo Bolsonaro& #39;s comments about the & #39;China Virus& #39; were stupid and short-sighted, particularly at a time when Brazil will almost certainly depend on Chinese medical equipment during the pandemic. But China& #39;s reaction is equally ill-advised [thread] https://oglobo.globo.com/opiniao/artigo-valorizeas-relacoes-china-brasildeputado-eduardo-24350358?utm_source=Twitter&utm_medium=Social&utm_campaign=compartilhar">https://oglobo.globo.com/opiniao/a...
The op-ed by China& #39;s Consul in Rio (link above) is aggressive & seeks to humiliate the president& #39;s son. China may try to set a precedent to assure that nobody else ever dares to repeat Eduardo Bolsonaro& #39;s strategy of blaming China for the pandemic. But it has already backfired.
Yesterday, Brazil& #39;s Minister of Education ridiculed China in a tweet, revealing a very troubling dynamic: attacking China has now become a way for cabinet ministers to consolidate support among Bolsonaro& #39;s most radical faction, which has strong influence over the president.
The unusually strong language used by China& #39;s Consul General in Rio, basically calling Eduardo Bolsonaro an idiot who has been brainwashed by the United States, shows that China is not afraid of keeping the conflict alive -- it may even have an interest in escalating it.
This strategy is a sign of Chinese confidence that Bolsonaro will go to great lengths and grovel and ask China for forgiveness, given its economic dependence. But it& #39;ll produce colateral damage that may sow the seeds of anti-China sentiment across Brazil later on.
Indeed, many Brazilians who dislike Eduardo Bolsonaro and are ashamed of him will recognize that a foreign diplomat writing an op-ed attacking a democratically elected Brazilian congressman in such a personal way sets a worrisome precedent.
For those who think this op-ed is an exception, I can assure you that it is part of a broader trend: around the world, Chinese diplomats have adopted a new, much more assertive and at times aggressive tone that would have been unthinkable a decade ago.
None of this changes the fact that Brazilian officials who are criticizing China today for political gain -- knowing that Chinese medical aid is likely to save thousands of Brazilian lives in the coming weeks -- is stupid, immoral and reckless.
