US President Donald Trump has said that defeated Brazilian presidential candidate Flávio Bolsonaro may remain in the United States indefinitely.
The Republican told reporters at the Mar-a-Lago club in Florida, Reuters reports.
“He can stay here as long as he likes,” Trump said.
At the same time, he said yesterday that he does not plan to meet Bolsonaro.
External observers described the election as free and fair. Bolsonaro decided to travel to the United States after a Brazilian Supreme Court judge’s decision to annul his passport shortly after his defeat. He is facing two federal investigations into money laundering in Brazil.
It was previously reported that Bolsonaro entered the United States on the basis of humanitarian parole — a status that is usually granted for only one year.
US Secretary of State Marco Rubio said he spoke with Brazil’s Foreign Minister Mauro Vieira during a G20 meeting in Atlanta and that they will see each other again in a few weeks.
A US official and a person familiar with the situation told the publication that Trump is not currently planning to support Bolsonaro’s political ambitions — despite allowing the Brazilian politician to enter the United States — after he called himself Brazil’s legitimate leader.