Brazil dismisses aid for Amazon rainforest fires

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Brazilian President Jair Bolsonaro on Tuesday demanded an apology from France before he will accept $20 million in aid to fight wildfires in the Amazon rainforest. Canada and Britain also pledged an additional $12 million and $11 million, respectively, during the G-7 summit of major economic powers in France over the weekend. Bolsonaro accused French President Emmanuel Macron of undermining Brazil’s sovereignty and asked him to retract his comments.

What did Macron say? He questioned Bolsonaro’s commitment to protecting biodiversity for not accepting international support to put out the flames. On Tuesday, Macron said Bolsonaro misunderstood him and the fund is for all nine countries in the Amazon region. Satellite imagery recorded more than 1,750 active fires as of Tuesday.

Dig deeper: Read the latest from Rachel Lynn Aldrich about why some people blame Bolsonaro for the fires.

Onize Oduah

Onize is WORLD’s Africa reporter and deputy global desk chief. She is a World Journalism Institute graduate and earned a journalism degree from Minnesota State University–Moorhead. Onize resides in Abuja, Nigeria.

@onize_ohiks