Brazil rejects US request to classify local gangs as terrorist organisations
President Donald Trump has been trying to tie his aggressive crackdown on immigration to the presence of members of Latin American criminal gangs in US cities. PHOTO: REUTERS
BRASILIA - The Brazilian government rejected a request by the US State Department to designate two major criminal gangs that officials believe to have members in the United States as terrorist organisations, Mr Mario Sarrubo, Brazil's national secretary of public security, told Reuters on May 7.
He said the request was made on May 6 during a meeting between Mr David Gamble, who leads the sanctions strategy for the US State Department, six other officials from President Donald Trump's administration, and eight Brazilian officials in Brasilia.
Mr Gamble was concerned about the gangs Primeiro Comando da Capital, known as PCC, and Comando Vermelho, known as CV, which control territories in several Brazilian cities.
Mr Trump has been trying to tie his aggressive crackdown on immigration to the presence of members of Latin American criminal gangs in US cities. Earlier in 2025, the US government designated several drug cartels as terrorist organisations, including Venezuela's Tren de Aragua and El Salvador's MS13.
"We don't have terrorist organisations here, we have criminal organisations that have infiltrated society," Mr Sarrubo, who wasn't in the meeting, said. But Brazilian law, he added, only considers organisations that violently clash with the government for religious or racial reasons to be terrorists.
In recent weeks, the Trump administration has deported hundreds of Latin American immigrants, alleging they were gang members, though it presented little evidence of their criminal ties.
At the meeting in Brasilia, US officials informed their Brazilian counterparts that their request was part of an effort to address immigration and criminal gangs with a transnational presence, saying they were priorities to the Trump administration, one source who was present said.
US officials said a terrorist designation could help the government apply sanctions, raise resources and target criminal supply chains, the same source added.
According to this source, US officials said the Federal Bureau of Investigation had reported the PCC and the Comando Vermelho had cells in 12 US states, mainly Massachusetts, New Jersey, New York, Florida, Connecticut and Tennessee.
Those reports, the source added, alleged that the gangs trafficked guns and laundered money through Brazilians who traveled to the US, adding that 113 people were denied visas to enter the country because of connections to organized crime in 2024 alone.
In March, the US Attorney's Office charged 18 Brazilians with trafficking several types of firearms within the US. Some of the illegal activities, the government said, had ties to the PCC, and many of the Brazilians who were charged were in the US illegally.
On May 5, the office of Senator Flavio Bolsonaro, son of former Brazilian President Jair Bolsonaro, said he met with Trump Organization officials to deliver a dossier that he said included intelligence information that tied both the PCC and the CV to terrorist acts.
The US embassy in Brasilia did not immediately reply to a request for comment. REUTERS
Join ST's Telegram channel and get the latest breaking news delivered to you.
Hashtags
Try Our AI Features
Explore what Daily8 AI can do for you:
Comments
No comments yet...
Related Articles
Straits Times
37 minutes ago
- Straits Times
Trump, Germany's Merz kick off friendly meeting with talks on Ukraine and trade
FILE PHOTO: German Chancellor Friedrich Merz delivers a speech at the German Association of Towns and Municipalities event in Berlin, Germany, June 3, 2025. REUTERS/Christian Mang/File Photo WASHINGTON - U.S. President Donald Trump and German Chancellor Friedrich Merz kicked off a White House meeting on Thursday with talks on Ukraine and trade but none of the fireworks that have characterized other Oval Office meetings with foreign leaders. Trump described Merz as a good representative of Germany and also "difficult," which he suggested was a compliment. He said U.S. troops would remain in Germany and said it was positive that Berlin was spending more money on defence. Merz said he was pleased to be there and preparing for a deeper relationship with the United States. The two leaders met in the Oval Office, which has been the site of showdowns between Trump and visiting dignitaries including Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskiy and South African President Cyril Ramaphosa. Not so on Thursday. Trump and Merz, both conservatives, appeared to have a warm rapport from the start. Merz started with praise, thanking Trump for putting him up in the Blair House, a presidential guest dwelling across from the White House, and Trump thanked him for doing so. But tensions over trade simmered under the surface of their encounter. The United States and the European Union are in talks to reach a trade deal, which would be critical for Germany's export-heavy economy, but Trump said he would be fine with an agreement or with tariffs. "We'll end up hopefully with a trade deal," Trump said. "I'm ok with the tariffs or we make a deal with the trade." Merz, who took office last month, told reporters ahead of the meeting that they would discuss Russia's war in Ukraine, U.S. tariffs and NATO in the meeting but said he was not expecting major breakthroughs. Germany is the second largest military and financial backer of Ukraine in its defence against Russia's invasion, after the United States. Trump has urged NATO countries to spend more on defence, though he suggested there might be some limits on how far Berlin should go given its World War II past. TENSIONS UNDERNEATH The meeting comes amid a broader fraying of ties between the U.S. and many European countries. Trump's administration has intervened in domestic European politics in a break with past practice, aligning with right-wing political movements and challenging European policies on immigration and free speech. Merz, 69, and his entourage have sought coaching from other leaders on how to deal with Trump to avoid conflict, according to a source briefed on the matter. The meeting is taking place just weeks before a critical summit of the NATO Western military alliance, which has been strained by Trump's threats that the U.S. will not come to the aid of allies that do not increase their defence spending. Such threats are of particular concern to Germany, which has relied on U.S. nuclear deterrence for its security since the end of World War Two. Merz has already made some bold policy moves that he can highlight to appease Trump, analysts said. He has backed Trump's demand for NATO members to commit to a target of more than doubling defence spending to 5% of economic output in the future, earning praise last weekend from U.S. Defence Secretary Pete Hegseth. Merz, who has promised a more assertive foreign policy, also coordinated a visit by European leaders to Kyiv just days after taking office, two European diplomat sources said. "This shows that Germany is willing to accept a greater responsibility for Ukraine and the European security order – these are all things that have been wished for in the United States over years and will be welcomed," said Sudha David-Wilp of the German Marshall Fund of the United States. Merz and Trump could find some common ground given they share business backgrounds, membership in right-of-center political parties, a focus on fighting illegal immigration and a fondness for golf, said Steven Sokol, President and CEO of the American Council on Germany. However, analysts noted frictions in the U.S.-German relationship. Merz was publicly critical of Trump shortly before the 2024 presidential election. On the eve of his own party's election victory in February, Merz criticised the "ultimately outrageous" comments flowing from Washington during the campaign, comparing them to hostile interventions from Russia. REUTERS Join ST's Telegram channel and get the latest breaking news delivered to you.
Straits Times
2 hours ago
- Straits Times
Germany's Merz tempers expectations of breakthroughs in Trump talks
FILE PHOTO: German Chancellor Friedrich Merz delivers a speech at the German Association of Towns and Municipalities event in Berlin, Germany, June 3, 2025. REUTERS/Christian Mang/File Photo WASHINGTON/BERLIN - German Chancellor Friedrich Merz said he would discuss Russia's war in Ukraine, U.S. tariffs and NATO in his first meeting with U.S. President Donald Trump on Thursday, but was not expecting major breakthroughs. Merz, a conservative who took office last month, was scheduled to join Trump for a meeting in the Oval Office and a White House lunch that analysts say could set the tone for U.S.-German ties for years to come. "I look forward to the talks although I do not expect us to make major breakthroughs on these three topics," Merz told reporters ahead of the meeting, his first with Trump as chancellor of Germany, Europe's largest economy. Trade will be a key topic along with ending the Ukraine war, Merz said. Germany is the second largest military and financial backer of Ukraine in its defence against Russia's invasion, after the United States. While Trump has threatened tariffs to slash Germany's substantial trade surplus, Merz said he would counter that his country is also the third biggest direct investor in the United States. The meeting comes amid a broader fraying of ties between the U.S. and many European countries. Trump's administration has, for example, intervened in domestic European politics in a break with past practice, aligning with right-wing political movements and challenging European policies on immigration and free speech. The Merz-Trump encounter will be closely watched after some dramatic Oval Office meetings in recent months in which the U.S. leader scolded Ukraine's President Volodymyr Zelenskiy and South African President Cyril Ramaphosa, and made false assertions. Merz, 69, and his entourage have sought coaching from other leaders on how to deal with Trump to avoid conflict, according to a source briefed on the matter. The meeting is taking place just weeks before a critical summit of the NATO Western military alliance, which has been strained by Trump's threats that the U.S. will not come to the aid of allies that do not increase their defence spending. Such threats are of particular concern to Germany, which has relied on U.S. nuclear deterrence for its security since the end of World War Two. Merz has already made some bold policy moves that he can highlight to appease Trump, analysts said. He has backed Trump's demand for NATO members to commit to a target of more than doubling defence spending to 5% of economic output in the future, earning praise last weekend from U.S. Defence Secretary Pete Hegseth. Merz, who has promised a more assertive foreign policy, also coordinated a visit by European leaders to Kyiv just days after taking office, two European diplomat sources said. "This shows that Germany is willing to accept a greater responsibility for Ukraine and the European security order – these are all things that have been wished for in the United States over years and will be welcomed," said Sudha David-Wilp of the German Marshall Fund of the United States. The fact Merz was invited to stay in the Blair House guest quarters across from the White House is a positive signal, said analysts. TO ARGUE OR NOT WITH TRUMP Merz and Trump could find some common ground given they share business backgrounds, membership in right-of-centre political parties, a focus on fighting illegal immigration and a fondness for golf, said Steven Sokol, President and CEO of the American Council on Germany. Merz has described himself as "a convinced transatlanticist", chairing the "Atlantic Bridge", a non-profit fostering U.S.-German ties, for 10 years. "They might discover a kindred spirit," Sokol said. However, analysts noted huge frictions in the U.S.-German relationship. "The challenge that he could face is ... if Trump says something is erroneous, do you correct him? Do you risk turning it into an argument?" said Jeffrey Rathke, a former U.S. diplomat and president of the American-German Institute at the Johns Hopkins University in Washington. Merz was publicly critical of Trump shortly before the 2024 presidential election. On the eve of his own party's election victory in February, Merz criticised the "ultimately outrageous" comments flowing from Washington during the campaign, comparing them to hostile interventions from Russia. REUTERS Join ST's Telegram channel and get the latest breaking news delivered to you.
Business Times
2 hours ago
- Business Times
Trump and Xi agree to further talks to settle trade disputes
[WASHINGTON] US President Donald Trump and Chinese leader Xi Jinping agreed to further talks between the countries to hash out differences on tariffs that have roiled the global economy, according to US and Chinese summaries of their phone call on Thursday (Jun 5). 'There should no longer be any questions respecting the complexity of rare earth products,' Trump wrote on social media. 'Our respective teams will be meeting shortly at a location to be determined.' Trump and a Chinese government summary of the meeting said the leaders had invited each other to their respective countries at a future date. 'The US side should take a realistic view of the progress made and withdraw the negative measures imposed on China,' the Chinese government said in a statement published by the state-run Xinhua news agency. 'Xi Jinping welcomed Trump's visit to China again, and Trump expressed his sincere gratitude.' The highly anticipated call came amid accusations between Washington and Beijing in recent weeks over 'rare earths' minerals in a dispute that has threatened to tear up a fragile truce in the trade war between the two biggest economies. The countries struck a 90-day deal on May 12 to roll back some of the triple-digit, tit-for-tat tariffs they had placed on each other since Trump's January inauguration. BT in your inbox Start and end each day with the latest news stories and analyses delivered straight to your inbox. Sign Up Sign Up Though stocks rallied, the temporary deal did not address broader concerns that strain the bilateral relationship, from the illicit fentanyl trade to the status of democratically governed Taiwan and US complaints about China's state-dominated, export-driven economic model. Since returning to the White House in January, Trump has repeatedly threatened an array of punitive measures on trading partners, only to revoke some of them at the last minute. The on-again, off-again approach has baffled world leaders and spooked business executives, who say the uncertainty has made it difficult to forecast market conditions. China's decision in April to suspend exports of a wide range of critical minerals and magnets continues to disrupt supplies needed by automakers, computer chip manufacturers and military contractors around the world. Beijing sees mineral exports as a source of leverage – halting those exports could put domestic political pressure on the Republican US president if economic growth sags because companies cannot produce mineral-powered products. The 90-day deal to roll back tariffs and trade restrictions is tenuous. Trump has accused China of violating the agreement and has ordered curbs on chip design software and other shipments to China, while also doubling steel and aluminum tariffs to 50 per cent. Beijing rejected the claim and threatened counter-measures. In recent years, the US has identified China as its top geopolitical rival and the only country in the world able to challenge the US economically and militarily. Despite this and repeated trade threats and tariff announcements, Trump has spoken admiringly of Xi, including of the Chinese leader's toughness and ability to stay in power without the term limits imposed on US presidents. Trump has long pushed for a call or a meeting with Xi, but China has rejected that as not in keeping with its traditional approach of working out agreement details before the leaders talk. The US president and his aides see leader-to-leader talks as vital to sort through log-jams that have vexed lower-level officials in difficult negotiations. Thursday's call came at Trump's request, China said. It's not clear when the two men last spoke. Both sides said they spoke on Jan 17, days before Trump's inauguration and Trump has repeatedly said that he had spoken to Xi since taking office on Jan 20. He has declined to say when any call took place or to give details of their conversation. China had said that the two leaders had not had any recent phone calls. The talks are being closely watched by investors worried that a chaotic trade war could cut into corporate earnings and disrupt supply chains in the key months before the Christmas holiday shopping season. Trump's tariffs are also the subject of ongoing litigation in US courts. Trump has met Xi on several occasions, including exchange visits in 2017, but they have not met face to face since 2019 talks in Osaka, Japan. Xi last traveled to the US in November 2023, for a summit with then-President Joe Biden, resulting in agreements to resume military-to-military communications and curb fentanyl production. REUTERS
