Brazil's Federal Police announced on Wednesday that they have revoked the working credentials which allowed a U.S. immigration officer based in Brasilia to access some Brazilian police data. The move, Public Security Director-General Andrei Rodrigues said in an interview with GloboNews, was taken after a comparable action from U.S. authorities affecting a Brazilian official.
Washington had notified Brazilian officials on Monday that it had asked Brazilian security attache Marcelo Ivo de Carvalho - who served as a liaison with U.S. immigration enforcement and was posted in Miami - to leave the United States. Rodrigues said the attache returned to Brazil at his own request, and upon his return was informed that his working credentials had been withdrawn. That, Rodrigues said, prompted the Federal Police to revoke the U.S. officer's credentials.
"I have revoked the (U.S. officer's) credentials with great regret. I wish none of this was happening," Rodrigues said, adding that Brazil does not seek to expel any U.S. official. He also said the Federal Police want clarity on how De Carvalho's credentials were revoked, noting the Brazilian side did not receive formal notice from U.S. authorities about the matter.
The episode unfolded after U.S. immigration agency ICE briefly detained Alexandre Ramagem, a former Brazilian lawmaker who left Brazil in September after a conviction for plotting a coup with ex-President Jair Bolsonaro. Brazilian President Luiz Inacio Lula da Silva said on Tuesday that his government could reciprocate any perceived abuses by U.S. authorities in the matter concerning the Brazilian attache.
Rodrigues framed the revocation as a reciprocal response tied directly to the series of administrative actions involving the two countries' officials. He emphasized the Federal Police's desire to understand the procedural steps taken by U.S. authorities, as Brazilian officials said they had not been formally notified of the attache's credential revocation before acting.
The case highlights a current diplomatic friction point between Brazil and the United States centered on immigration enforcement liaison roles and the handling of personnel credentials. Officials on both sides are portrayed in public statements as seeking explanation and resolution, while also warning that measures could be met with reciprocal steps.
Clear summary
Brazil revoked an American immigration officer's access credentials after the U.S. asked Brazil's security attache in Miami to leave. Brazilian authorities say they were not formally notified about the attache's credential status and have sought an explanation from U.S. counterparts. The dispute follows the brief detention by ICE of a former Brazilian lawmaker.