Brazil to Open ‘Non-Diplomatic’ Trade Mission in Jerusalem

The office will focus on partnerships involving technology, agriculture, water, and cyber-security.

By United with Israel Staff

Israeli officials confirmed on Monday that Brazil is set to open a trade office in Jerusalem on December 15. The office will not have diplomatic status, as opposed to the trade offices of Hungary and Honduras.

The opening of the office was first announced in March, during a visit to Israel by Brazil’s President Jair Bolsonaro.

According to the Brazilian Agency for the Promotion of Exports and Investments (Apex-Brasil), a body linked to the Ministry of Foreign Relations that will manage the office, the office will handle trade, investment, technology and innovation.

The office, located in Jerusalem’s Har Hotzvim hi-tech park, will be headed by Camila Torres Meyer, an international trade analyst, who has worked for Apex for 12 years. The other two employees will be Israelis.

The office will focus on partnerships involving technology in agriculture and water, as well as cyber-security for data protection and military enforcement, according to Poder360 news.

Senior Brazilian lawmakers, headed by the Brazilian president’s son Eduardo, will attend the opening of the trade office. Eduardo is known for his strong support of Israel and his desire to move the Brazilian embassy to Jerusalem.

Brazil has yet to move its embassy from Tel Aviv to Jerusalem, the capital of Israel, though Bolsonaro expressed his desire to do so.

Thus far, the US and Guatemala have located their embassies in Israel’s capital city. Honduras is expected to transfer its embassy to Jerusalem in the coming weeks.