Report: Biden to Visit Amazon Rainforest in November

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Facts

  • US Pres. Joe Biden is expected to visit the Amazon rainforest in November and meet his Brazilian counterpart, Luiz Inácio Lula da Silva, according to reports from news outlet Reuters.[1]
  • Biden and Lula could meet on Nov. 16 or 17 in Manaus, the largest city in the Amazon, or Belém, at the mouth of the Amazon River, ahead of the G20 summit scheduled for Rio de Janeiro between Nov. 18 and 19.[1]
  • Though the White House hasn't confirmed the report, US government officials have already visited Manaus and Belém to study conditions. If confirmed, this would mark the first formal state visit of a US president to Brazil since 2011.[1][2]
  • The Brazilian Amazon has this year registered the highest number of fire hotspots between January and August since 2005. The total burned area — about 13.4M acres — is larger than the entirety of Denmark.[3]
  • Most of the fires have allegedly been started illegally by loggers, miners, and farmers. However, Brazil's worst drought on record has reportedly exacerbated their effects.[4][5]
  • In June, the US provided $47M to Brazil's internationally sourced Amazon Fund for rainforest protection. This marked the completion of its first $50M donation, which stemmed from a $500M pledge Biden made in April 2023.[6]

Sources: [1]Reuters, [2]Department History, [3]Rainforest Foundation US, [4]BBC News, [5]Associated Press and [6]United States Embassy & Consulates in Brazil.

Narratives

  • Democratic narrative, as provided by The New Republic. With this potential visit to the Brazilian Amazon in his final days in office, Biden would be making a last push to save the rainforest and, consequently, the climate. Although more could have been done to put that issue in the spotlight in his tenure, consuming international crises and regional sensitivities largely restricted Biden to rhetorical efforts until now.
  • Republican narrative, as provided by National Review. Like every other globalist leader, Biden is now focusing on the Amazon rainforest and calling for radical action on the climate. While the Amazon is undoubtedly a natural wonder worth preserving, its preservation mustn't malign the interests of countries sharing ownership of the rainforest. After all, the Amazon is not the lungs of the world — this is pure disinformation.

Predictions