Waack: US pressure targets Lula's weak spot at the polls

The American government decided to classify PCC and Red Command as terrorist organizations.

This creates a huge embarrassment for the Brazilian government, which has been opposing this type of classification, and on the eve of an election in which the Lula government's main vulnerability is what is perceived by the public as an inability to combat organized crime.

From the point of view of practical effects in confronting the PCC and CV, there is great disagreement among experts regarding the classification of these groups as terrorists.

There are doubts even within the Brazilian Armed Forces, for which cooperation with American Military Forces is considered essential, preferably without politicization.

But politicization is exactly the central point of the moment.

In principle, the American government now has, in relation to the Brazilian government, a formidable legal arsenal to:

- Exclude from the dollar system Brazilian financial institutions that have links with organizations declared terrorist;
- Sanction Brazilian companies or multinationals operating in Brazil that pay intermediaries linked to factions;
- Bar entry into the United States of people with any type of connection to these groups.

But politics is the central issue. In two spheres.

The new American national security doctrine requires countries in this area to fully align with what the United States considers issues of interest to them, especially in the area of transnational crime.

The American government is committed to favoring political groups with which it is close, such as the current led by the Bolsonaro family.

In this sense, it is an instrument of the American government for diplomatic and, eventually, military coercion, and for political assistance to Flávio Bolsonaro before the elections.

Source: CNN