Luxembourg announced it will join the Tropical Forest Forever Facility (TFFF), contributing 50 million euros by 2030 through its Climate and Energy Fund. The country also stated it plans to start a long-term annual contribution to the facility in 2030.

The TFFF is a Brazilian initiative launched during COP30, in November 2025 in Brazil, with the aim of creating an international financing mechanism designed to assign economic value to preserved tropical forests, rewarding countries for conservation efforts. Since its launch, Germany, France, Norway, the Netherlands, Indonesia, and Portugal have announced contributions to the preservation fund.

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Foreign Minister Mauro Vieira participated on Friday (5) in the international climate event to discuss related issues. It was during the assembly that Luxembourg’s accession was announced. The high-level event marked the first edition of the International Climate Finance Days.

Vieira’s trip also marks the first visit by a Brazilian foreign minister to Luxembourg since the resumption of diplomatic relations in 1911.

During his meeting with local government officials, the minister discussed issues related to the provisional enforcement of the Mercosur–European Union trade agreement, as well as matters pertaining to sustainable development and bilateral trade.

According to the Brazilian Ministry of Foreign Relations, Luxembourg’s investments in Brazil total USD 23.5 billion, primarily in the energy and infrastructure sectors. Investments by Brazilian companies in Luxembourg amount to some USD 35 billion.

The Brazilian government is seeking a tariff agreement with the US that would prevent the White House from adopting the recommendation of the US Trade Representative (USTR), which suggests imposing an additional 25 percent tariff on some imports from Brazil.

The government believes it is possible, though difficult, to reach a compromise that is more advantageous for both countries than the 25 percent surcharge – because, among other reasons, the US has a trade surplus with Brazil.

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The USTR’s recommendation, announced last week, is the result of an investigation based on Section 301 of the US Trade Act. The argument used is that Brazil engages in “unfair” practices in trade relations.

Brazil countered that the claims are not valid and that the move stems from a bid to interfere in internal affairs and reflects Washington’s unilateral trade protectionism.

The government has been challenging the additional US tariffs, arguing that the average tariff applied by Brazil on US imports is 2.7 percent, which does not justify the claim that US companies would be disadvantaged in accessing the Brazilian market.

New deadline

Brazil is now working toward a July 15 deadline to reach a tariff agreement. That was the date set by the USTR for a decision on the matter. In theory, this deadline could still be extended.

As a result, Brazilian negotiators hope to gain more time, since the initial deadline set after the meeting between Presidents Luiz Inácio Lula da Silva and Donald Trump in Washington last month was 30 days, which ended on Sunday (Jun. 7).

Challenges

Among the challenges facing the negotiations is the fact that the US is involved in several other tariff talks around the world, in addition to the military conflict it is leading in the Middle East against Iran.

Meanwhile, the Brazilian government is assessing the advisability of a new meeting between Trump and Lula. The two may meet at the G7 summit in France from June 15 to 17. However, no bilateral meeting has been confirmed.

Another challenge in negotiating with the US is that Americans tend to have broad demands – multiple requests across different areas.

For now, Brazil is seeking an agreement specifically on tariff and trade issues, with other topics that might interest the Americans, such as rare earth metals, currently out of the picture. At the same time, the government states that Brazil’s popular instant payment system Pix is not part of any talks with Washington. The US insists that Pix harms US companies.

Slave labor

On the other hand, the additional 10 or 12.5 percent tariff imposed on 60 countries on the grounds that these nations do not effectively combat slave-like labor is viewed by the Brazilian government – which faces a 12.5 percent surcharge – as designed not to be negotiated.

Since this tax is imposed on much of the world, its primary aim is believed to be to reinstate, under new legal and argumentative grounds, the previous tariff that was overturned by the US Supreme Court.

In addition to Brazil, the new tariff affects Washington’s historic allies, such as Japan, the European Union, Canada, and India, as well as Argentina, led by Javier Milei, who has consistently sided with Donald Trump on international issues. It would raise the tax on some products sold to the US by 37.5 percent when added to the existing 25 percent tariff.

The Brazilian Ministry of Foreign Relations announced that Brazil has been elected to serve on the United Nations Economic and Social Council (ECOSOC). The country’s term will run from 2027 to 2029.

The election took place Tuesday (Jun. 4), and Brazil received 181 votes from representatives of the countries that make up the organization.

In the view of Brazilian diplomats, the election underscores the nation’s key role on the international stage.

“It reflects the importance attributed to the strategic role that the country is to play in ECOSOC, particularly in reducing inequalities and promoting sustainable peace,” the ministry stated.

The council, composed of 54 members, is one of the main bodies of the United Nations (UN) and is tasked with coordinating the specialized agencies of the UN, making recommendations on issues involving international trade, development, human rights, the status of women, science, and technology, among others.

The US government’s decision to label Brazilian criminal factions CV (“Comando Vermelho”) and PCC (“Primeiro Comando da Capital”) as terrorist organizations took effect on Friday (Jun. 5), a move that could have economic and geopolitical consequences for the Latin American country. The measure had been announced on May 28.

The Brazilian government criticized the decision, arguing that it leaves room for Washington to interfere in internal affairs under the pretext of combating terrorism. According to a statement from the executive, the fight against crime should occur through international cooperation and with respect for the sovereignty of states over their territories.

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The government and experts also argue that the measure could harm the country’s economy, with repercussions for tourism, investment, foreign trade, and the financial system.

Shield of the Americas

The Trump administration has designated Mexican cartels and criminal organizations in countries such as Venezuela, Ecuador, and Colombia as terrorist groups.

In March this year, the White House formed a coalition called the Shield of the Americas, bringing together governments ideologically aligned with Trump to theoretically combat drug trafficking, but also to counter the economic influence of geopolitical adversaries such as China and Russia.

The fight against drug trafficking was the justification used to kidnap Venezuela’s then-President Nicolás Maduro as well as to pressure Mexico – a move denounced by Mexico’s current President Claudia Sheinbaum as foreign interference in internal affairs.

The US government announced that it may impose a new punitive 25 percent tariff on Brazilian imports, alleging that certain practices in Brazil are unfair.

Among the practices cited are e-commerce and illegal deforestation. Some products, including beef, coffee, rare earth metals, other metals, and aircraft parts, are exempt from the new tariff, which may take effect on July 15.

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The measure is based on an investigation launched in July 2025 by the Office of the United States Trade Representative (USTR), which concluded that Brazilian policies and practices are “unreasonable” and “burden or restrict” US trade.

The investigation’s final report calls for the imposition of “tariffs or other restrictions on imports of Brazilian products.”

“Based on this possibility, the US Trade Representative proposed the application of 25 percent tariffs on all goods from Brazil,” the document reads.

The additional tariffs, however, include exceptions for products that could cause “disruptions” across the economy if subjected to the new duties, as well as “certain products that cannot be grown or produced in sufficient quantities in the United States, nor obtained from other sources.”

Among the exceptions are fruits and nuts, crude oil and its derivatives, pharmaceutical compounds, organic chemicals, fertilizers, beef, coffee, rare earth minerals, certain metals and ores, and Brazilian aircraft and aircraft parts.

US Trade Act

The USTR’s decision, announced on Monday evening (Jun. 1), is based on provisions of Section 301 of the US Trade Act of 1974.

The investigation assessed practices in the areas of digital commerce and electronic payment services, such as the Pix instant payment system; preferential tariff policies; intellectual property protection; anti-corruption measures; access to the ethanol market; and illegal deforestation.

The USTR asserts that, in these areas, US companies and exports are being harmed. As a result, the US government has opened a public consultation on possible corrective measures.

The process includes a comment period ending July 1 and a public hearing on July 6, while negotiations with the Brazilian government continue. The legal deadline for adopting the new tariff is July 15, 2026.

The investigation has already heard testimony from more than 30 witnesses and received nearly 300 submissions.

US Ambassador Jamieson Greer said the investigation was launched at the request of President Donald Trump, who cited longstanding and widespread US concerns about certain Brazilian trade policies and practices.

“Over the past year, President Trump and I have had several constructive meetings with President Luiz Inácio Lula da Silva and his cabinet. These meetings have intensified in recent weeks,” Greer said.

“However, we continue to have substantial differences regarding the resolution of the issues identified in this investigation. I look forward to continuing the dialogue with the Brazilian government before the July 15, 2026 legal deadline for taking corrective measures,” he added.

On Tuesday (Jun. 2), China issued a statement supporting Brazil’s sovereignty, independence, and autonomy. According to the Chinese State Council, the country is willing to expand the cooperation it has maintained with Brazil and other Latin American countries

The Chinese statement in support of Brazil was made in Beijing during the China–Brazil Comprehensive Strategic Dialogue.

The ties between the two countries were reaffirmed amid threats from the US to impose a 25 percent tariff on Brazilian products not considered strategic for the US market.

Cooperation and sovereignty

According to Chinese Foreign Minister Wang Yi, China has always been a “reliable friend of the countries of Latin America and the Caribbean” and is “ready to work with countries in the region, including Brazil, to further deepen and expand overall cooperation between China and Latin America.”

He added that his country “supports Brazil in defending its national sovereignty, maintaining its independence and autonomy, and pursuing greater development.”

Joint efforts

Minister Wang called for Brazil and China to move forward in building a China–Brazil community in order to “jointly address various external challenges and generate greater synergy for the modernization processes of both countries and for the unity and strengthening of the countries of the Global South.”

He went on to say that both sides should advance exchanges and cooperation in areas such as culture, education, tourism, sports, subnational regions, youth, and the media.

Wang reiterated China’s position on strengthening communication and coordination within multilateral mechanisms, including the United Nations and BRICS. He also advocated for the implementation of global initiatives to promote the development of a “fairer and more equitable global governance system.”

Foreign minister

Brazilian Foreign Minister Mauro Vieira is in Beijing attending the assembly. He stated that Brazil shares China’s interest in expanding practical cooperation between the two countries.

He also said Brazil will continue to adhere to the “One China” principle. The term refers to China’s goal of reclaiming Taiwan, an island it considers a “rebel province.”
 

The US government announced on Thursday (May 28), in a statement from the State Department, that it will designate the Brazilian criminal factions Comando Vermelho (CV) and Primeiro Comando da Capital (PCC) as Foreign Terrorist Organizations (FTOs).

According to the statement, the decision will take effect on June 5, and the measures are adopted under Section 219 of the Immigration and Nationality Act and an executive order issued by President Donald Trump. The FTO designations take effect upon publication in the Federal Register.

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US Secretary of State Marco Rubio emphasized in the statement that CV and PCC are two of the most violent criminal organizations in Brazil.

“Together, they command thousands of members and have orchestrated brutal attacks against Brazilian police officers, public authorities, and civilians. Their influence and illicit networks extend far beyond Brazil’s borders, reaching our entire region and also our country,” said Rubio.

The Brazilian government had been trying in recent months to avoid this designation, believing it could pave the way for US military action in Brazil or the imposition of severe sanctions on economic and financial sectors.

Risk

According to experts, this designation represents a potential risk to Brazilian sovereignty and could even harm investigative cooperation efforts between the two countries, as it could alter the level of confidentiality of information shared between their security agencies, centralizing it in the US Central Intelligence Agency (CIA) or military bodies.

According to these experts, this change could hinder ongoing joint investigations and make future cooperation impossible.

“Narcoterrorism”

In this new context, the Donald Trump administration has been reorienting Washington’s foreign policy toward Latin America, directing its war machine to the region under the justification of combating what it calls “narcoterrorism.”

Over the past few months, US military forces have directly bombed several vessels in the Caribbean, outside of US jurisdiction, under the pretext of combating terrorism.

The invasion of Venezuelan territory earlier this year, which resulted in the removal and capture of then-President Nicolás Maduro and his wife, Cilia Flores, was also justified on the basis of combating narcoterrorism.

The scope of similar actions on Brazilian territory under this new designation, while uncertain, becomes a real risk.

Earlier this month, during a visit to the US, President Luiz Inácio Lula da Silva discussed with Donald Trump at the White House the adoption of joint efforts between the two governments to financially suffocate transnational criminal organizations operating in Brazil and the US. According to Lula, they did not specifically address criminal factions operating in Brazil, such as CV and PCC.

Rubio’s announcement also coincides with a meeting between him and Senator Flávio Bolsonaro, a pre-candidate for Brazil’s presidency, which took place on Tuesday (May 26) in Washington. A day earlier, the senator had met with Trump at the White House, accompanied by his brother, the self-exiled former federal representative Eduardo Bolsonaro, both sons of former President Jair Bolsonaro.

Negotiations to finalize the free trade agreement between Mercosur and Canada advanced with a meeting of thematic groups in Toronto, Canada, from May 25 to 29. The 10th Round of Negotiations deepened discussions on the consolidation of the treaty, which had resumed in October of last year.

The highlight of the meeting was the in-person sessions held by technical groups on the trade in goods, services, and financial services; the temporary entry of business travelers; rules of origin; intellectual property; bilateral safeguards; sustainable development; inclusive trade; and legal and institutional issues.

In addition to the technical discussions, Canada’s Minister of International Trade Maninder Sidhu met with chief negotiators from Mercosur.

At the previous meeting, in late April, discussions focused on rules of origin, intellectual property, sanitary and phytosanitary barriers, and trade and sustainable development.

The parties expect to finalize the agreement at further meetings in the first half of the year, with dates to be determined.

Brazil and Canada

In 2025, trade between Brazil and Canada saw a significant increase after both countries were affected by trade barriers imposed by the US government. Bilateral trade reached USD 10.4 billion last year. Brazilian exports to the Canadian market totaled USD 7.3 billion in 2025 – a 14.8 percent surge over the previous year and a historic record for the series.

Mercosur

The resumption of bloc-level negotiations has been a priority for the current Mercosur administration, chaired by the Paraguayan government. The agreement with the European Union entered into force on May 1.

The bloc has also made progress in discussions with other Latin American countries, such as Chile, Ecuador, Colombia, and Peru, as well as in talks with the United Arab Emirates and the EFTA, comprising Iceland, Liechtenstein, Norway, and Switzerland.

Brazilian Foreign Minister Mauro Vieira will participate in Beijing this Monday (Jun. 1) and Tuesday (2) in the 5th Global Strategic Dialogue between Brazil and China – a mechanism that facilitates the exchange of global, regional, and bilateral agendas.

Minister Vieira is expected to meet with Chinese vice-President Han Zheng and Minister of Commerce Wang Wentao. The Brazilian foreign minister will also visit the National Museum of China, which is hosting events celebrating the Brazil–China Cultural Year.

According to the Ministry of Foreign Relations, China is Brazil’s largest trading partner. Trade between the two countries totaled USD 170.9 billion in 2025, with a surplus of USD 29 billion for Brazil, driven by exports of agricultural products.

Brazil and Suriname will begin negotiations in the second half of the year to expand their trade agreement and stimulate new business opportunities.

This rapprochement was one of the main focuses of the bilateral meeting between President Luiz Inácio Lula da Silva and Surinamese President Jennifer Geerlings-Simons, which took place on Thursday (May 28) in Brasília. Elected last year and serving a term until 2030, she is the first woman to lead the neighboring country.

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“Our trade is still very small and concentrated in a few products. In 2025, it was only 55 million dollars - that is, almost nothing. The only trade agreement we have is extremely limited. With this visit, we managed to approve terms of reference to increase trade flows between Brazil and Suriname,” Lula stated in a joint press statement at the Ministry of Foreign Affairs.

Bilateral trade includes machinery, electrical equipment, chemical industry products, and commodities, and is composed almost entirely of Brazilian exports. According to Lula, the negotiations should expand trade facilitation measures and include new sectors.

The Surinamese delegation’s program in Brasília includes a business meeting bringing together Brazilian entities and companies and representatives of Suriname’s productive sector in the areas of energy, logistics, transport, agriculture, and communications.

Critical oil and minerals

In recent years, Suriname has discovered significant offshore oil reserves in the region known as the Guiana Basin in the Atlantic Ocean, which are expected to boost the country’s economy in the coming years.

In 2024, Petrobras and the Surinamese state-owned company Staatsolie signed agreements on cooperation in oil, renewable energy, and safety in hydrocarbon exploration activities. Lula also recalled that, like Brazil, Suriname stands out for its potential in critical minerals, which are essential for the manufacture of electronic components for high-tech equipment.

“We have the opportunity to cooperate in sustainable mining, local industrialization, and value-added production, contributing to overcoming historical models based solely on the export of raw materials,” said the Brazilian president.

Food security

Another important area of bilateral cooperation is agriculture and food production. “Brazil can contribute significantly to the food and nutritional security of the Surinamese people through the supply of beef, pork, poultry, and other food products,” Lula emphasized.

Technical and scientific cooperation between the two countries was also the focus of agreements and memoranda of understanding signed during the meeting.

Jennifer Geerlings-Simons’ agenda in Brasília will also include a visit this week to a unit of the Brazilian Agricultural Research Corporation (Embrapa) for an exchange on expertise in family farming, food security, and sustainable agroforestry systems.

“For Suriname, lowering food costs and ensuring food security remain critical, and we are certain that Brazil is a partner we can trust to help us with this,” stated Geerlings-Simons.

Social programs

The President of Suriname will also visit a unit of the Social Assistance Reference Center (CRAS), the entry point to Brazilian government social programs, and a housing project under the Minha Casa, Minha Vida (My House, My Life) program, which could serve as inspiration for a model that Geerlings-Simons intends to take to the neighboring country.

“I think we agreed that the main task of every politician is to ensure that people can achieve the highest level of well-being. Furthermore, we discussed regional development issues and reaffirmed our shared commitment to democracy and regional integration,” added the Surinamese leader.

Signed agreements

In total, Lula and Jennifer Geerlings-Simons signed 13 cooperation agreements in sectors such as cybersecurity, police cooperation, combating human trafficking, public health, integrated fire management, hydroelectric dam security, and coordinated military operations in the Amazon border region.

The governments of Brazil and Suriname also discussed measures to expand maritime and air connections between the two countries and advance the so-called “Guiana Ring,” an integration project connecting northern Brazil to Guyana, Suriname, and French Guiana, facilitating access to the Caribbean market and strengthening regional infrastructure.

Brazil will transport food within Bolivia from Santa Cruz de la Sierra to the capital, La Paz. The humanitarian aid comes amid protests demanding the resignation of President Rodrigo Paz.

The operation, whose date has yet to be determined, will be coordinated by Brazil’s Ministries of Foreign Affairs and Agrarian Development in partnership with the Ministry of Defense, which will arrange for an aircraft from the Brazilian Air Force (FAB).

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The plane is scheduled to depart from Brasília for La Paz with food supplies aimed at mitigating the effects of roadblocks that have lasted more than three weeks, causing shortages in the Bolivian capital.

After unloading the supplies, the aircraft will transport items provided by Bolivian authorities or other organizations from one city to the other.

Cooperation

President Luiz Inácio Lula da Silva spoke on Monday (May 25) with Bolivian President Rodrigo Paz, who requested humanitarian assistance.

In a press release, the Brazilian government stated that, during his phone call with Rodrigo Paz, Lula reiterated “his solidarity with the Bolivian government and people” and emphasized the importance of “respect for democratic institutions and the rule of law.”

“In this context, he urged the government and social movements to avoid resorting to violence and prioritize dialogue as the path to overcoming differences and preserving social peace,” the statement said.

Crisis

Bolivia is facing a series of protests and roadblocks that have, over the past few weeks, turned into a popular uprising involving peasants, indigenous people, miners, teachers, and other social groups.

Decisions by Bolivia’s new president, who took office just six months ago after nearly 20 years of left-wing dominance, have sparked demonstrations across the country since the start of his term in December 2025, including a decree that eliminated gasoline subsidies.

The protests intensified after peasants and indigenous people accused the government of enacting land laws intended to harm small farmers in favor of large agribusiness interests.

The Bolivian government claims the law was intended to strengthen the country’s agricultural sector, which is facing a severe economic crisis. Under public pressure, the law was repealed, but the protests have continued to grow.

The crackdown on the demonstrations has already resulted in deaths and injuries and the arrest of several leaders.

President Luiz Inácio Lula da Silva on Monday (May 25) ordered the dispatch of humanitarian aid to Bolivia, which is facing a wave of protests. According to his press office, he responded to a request from Bolivian President Rodrigo Paz following a telephone conversation between the two leaders.

According to the statement, the two presidents discussed the humanitarian situation amid protests and roadblocks. The disruptions are causing shortages in some regions of the country.

Respect for institutions

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President Lula emphasized the importance of respecting democratic institutions and the rule of law.

“In this context, he argued that the government and social movements should avoid resorting to violence and prioritize dialogue to overcome differences and preserve social peace,” the statement read.

Crisis in Bolivia

The Andean country is facing a wave of protests and road blockades that, over the past few weeks, have evolved into a popular uprising involving peasants, indigenous communities, miners, teachers, and other social groups.

A series of decisions by Bolivia’s new president, who took office after nearly 20 years of left-wing dominance, has been sparking protests across the country since the start of his term in December 2025, beginning with a decree eliminating gasoline subsidies.

The protests escalated after the government enacted a land law that peasants and indigenous people say favors large agribusiness interests at the expense of small farmers. The government, however, argues that the measure was intended to strengthen the country’s agricultural sector amid a severe economic crisis.

Due to public pressure, Rodrigo Paz repealed the law last week. Even so, the protests continued and gained new supporters.

Most of the roadblocks are taking place around the capital, La Paz, causing shortages of food, fuel, and other supplies in the city’s markets.

The Brazilian government last Friday (May 22) proposed a regional pact against femicide in Mercosur, inspired by Brazil’s model of collaboration among its three branches of government. The initiative was presented by Women’s Minister Márcia Lopes during the 26th Meeting of Ministers and High Authorities for Women of Mercosur (RMAAM) in Asunción, Paraguay.

According to the minister, the proposal envisions cooperation among the bloc’s countries to strengthen policies for violence prevention, protection, and increased access to justice.

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“It is a political commitment among all Mercosur member and associate states to act in a coordinated and cooperative manner, respecting their sovereignties, competences, and national legal frameworks, to address femicide as a regional priority,” said Lopes.

Uruguay supported the proposal and pledged to keep the debate moving during its Mercosur presidency. Argentina, in turn, said it would continue its internal consultations on the matter.

In addition to the regional pact, the Brazilian government presented measures on digital platform regulation and combating violence against women in virtual environments.

“Brazil is taking the lead with the decrees announced by President Lula this week to protect women and with key measures on digital platform regulation,” the minister stated.

The country also shared the results of the first 100 days of the Brazilian Pact Against Femicide with the Paraguayan government. According to the Ministry of Women, the initiative led to the arrest of 6,300 abusers, slashed the review time for protective measures from 16 days to under three, and monitored more than 6,500 women using electronic devices.

Cooperation

Paraguayan Minister for Women Alicia Pomata advocated for expanding regional cooperation to address inequalities.

“Regional integration must be built from a perspective that places women at the center, recognizing their realities and valuing their contributions to the development of our nations,” Pomata declared.

The meeting’s program included debates on access to justice, digital violence, women’s economic empowerment, and care policies. Actions from the RMAAM’s 2025-2026 Work Plan were also discussed, focusing on topics such as gender-based political violence, trafficking of women, and mutual recognition of protective measures.

Created in 2011, RMAAM is the main Mercosur body focused on coordinating gender equality policies among the bloc’s member and associate countries.

Mercosur

Mercosur is a South American regional integration bloc created in 1991 and composed of Argentina, Brazil, Paraguay, Uruguay, and Bolivia. Venezuela is also a member, but has been suspended since 2016 due to political issues.

The Brazilian government, the Prosecution Service, and the country’s scientific community have been working to recover dinosaur fossils and other natural or cultural heritage items scattered across at least 14 countries.

Dubbed scientific colonialism, this practice is said to harm Brazilian science and museums. At least 20 restitution negotiations are underway with these countries, the Ministry of Foreign Relations reported.

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Like the Foreign Ministry, prosecutors in Ceará state are working on the repatriation of fossils. According to them, the US tops the list of countries with the highest number of requests for the return of cultural heritage items, with eight cases pending – followed by Germany (four); the UK (three); Italy (two); and France, Switzerland, Ireland, Portugal, Uruguay, and Japan (one each). The two requests addressed to Spain and the other two sent to South Korea were rejected.

Last month, an agreement between Brazil and Germany promises to repatriate the Irritator challengeri dinosaur, of the spinosaurid family, to the Araripe region in Ceará. The animal, which could reach 14 meters in height, lived in the region about 116 million years ago. The specimen was illegally removed from Brazil and had been at the State Museum of Natural History in Stuttgart, Germany, since 1991.

Another initiative by the Foreign Ministry, in partnership with Brazilian researchers, also facilitated the return in 2024 of the Tupinambá cloak, worn by Brazilian indigenous peoples in the 17th century and previously held in Denmark. Additionally, in February this year, another 45 original fossils from the region were repatriated from Switzerland.

Illegal sales

The director of the Plácido Cidade Nuvens Museum of Paleontology, in Santana do Cariri city, where part of the Araripe region is located, Professor Allysson Pinheiro, told Agência Brasil that the number reported by the Foreign Ministry does not include the lawsuits filed by federal prosecutors.

“There are several other items currently being negotiated with Germany, and there are Brazilian cultural assets on nearly every continent. Negotiations are underway for repatriations in the US, France, Korea, Japan, and Italy,” he stated.

In Brazil, fossils are protected by a law passed in 1942 which stipulates that natural heritage items must not be privately owned, because they belong to the federal government.

There are exceptions for exporting fossils, which require authorization from Brazil’s Ministry of Science and Technology, and the recipient of the material must be affiliated with a Brazilian institution.

The Ubirajara case

The repatriation of Brazilian cultural heritage assets has gained momentum in recent years, particularly after the small dinosaur Ubirajara jubatus was returned to Brazil in 2023. The specimen is now part of the museum’s collection.

Aline Ghilard, a paleontologist and coordinator of the Dinosaur Laboratory at the Federal University of Rio Grande do Norte (UFRN), explains that ordinary people began pressuring the German museum as early as 2020, as the institution had been refusing to return the fossil. 

“The museum issued a public statement saying there was nothing irregular about the situation and that the fossil belonged to Germany. The museum’s social media were flooded with comments from Brazilians. That was the turning point in the story,” she said.

Scientific colonialism

Aline Ghilard points out that the case damaged the German institution’s reputation and spurred the agreement to return the material.

“Most European museums are filled with artifacts from territories that were once colonies or that continue to be exploited today under a logic of power asymmetry. These countries feel entitled to come to our territories and collect materials,” she argued.

At least 490 fossils of macroinvertebrate species were illegally extracted from the Araripe region, according to a study published in Palaeontologia Electronica, which looks into research from 1955 to 2025. “Nearly half of all the publications analyzed [104 out of 218 – 47.7 percent] were written exclusively by foreign researchers, with no Brazilian co-authors,” noted Aline Ghilard, who participated in the study.

Another study identified 71 publications, released from 1990 and 2020, that contained analyses of macrofossils from the Araripe dating from the Cretaceous period, between 145 and 66 million years ago. “A large proportion [88%] of the fossils described in these publications were taken from Brazil to be deposited in foreign museum collections and have not yet been returned,” the Royal Society Open Science publication notes.

Some institutions return the fossils voluntarily as soon as they discover they were obtained through illegal sales – as was the case with the spider Cretapalpus vittari. The specimen was returned by the University of Kansas, in the US, in 2021. The animal lived more than 100 million years ago in the Araripe region.

Impact on science 

The illegal export of these fossils has significant consequences for Brazilian science. In most cases, Brazilian researchers are unable to study these materials.

“When all these high-quality fossils are sent abroad, it is foreigners who make the major discoveries that bring scientific and academic prestige. Basically, they’re the only ones producing cutting-edge science because they’re in a self-perpetuating cycle of power,” notes Ghilard.

In her view, repatriating natural heritage breaks the cycle of power that favors wealthier countries. “It could even attract foreign investment, enabling us to compete on equal footing.”

Impact on museums

Allyson Pinheiro, director of the Plácido Cidade Nuvens Museum of Paleontology, said that the return of the Ubirajara fossil has significantly increased both visitor numbers and investment.

“[It] is part of the region’s identity and pride. It is really important to see children embracing these treasures. Dinosaur fossils are a huge draw for this audience and have truly captivated both children and adults,” said the professor from the biological diversity and natural resources program at Urca (Regional University of Cariri).

In 2006, UNESCO designated the Araripe as a global geopark – the first with this designation in Brazil. A UNESCO global geopark is a territory that houses sites and landscapes of international geological significance.

In February 2024, UNESCO included the Araripe Basin, where the Irritator and Ubirajara dinosaurs were found, as a candidate for inclusion on the list of World Heritage Sites designated by the United Nations (UN). 

The region, covering approximately 972 thousand square kilometers, encompasses municipalities in the Brazilian states of Ceará, Piauí, and Pernambuco.