Brazil’s President Cancels US Visit in Response to Spying Allegations

The World
Brazil's President Dilma Rousseff. ( Photo: REUTERS/Ueslei Marcelino )

So the news today that Brazil's President Dilma Rousseff has postponed a state visit to the US next month has raised tensions on both sides of the equator.

The Brazilian leader had threatened to cancel her trip over of allegations of espionage.

Her anger stems from documents leaked by former intelligence contractor Edward Snowden.

Those records show the US National Security Agency has been intercepting emails and phone calls from Brazilians, including President Rousseff herself.

Carolina Rossini is the project director for the Latin American Resource Center of the Open Technology Institute.

She says Brazil's irritation with the US has been building for months.

Will you support The World today?

The story you just read is available for free because thousands of listeners and readers like you generously support our nonprofit newsroom. Every day, reporters and producers at The World are hard at work bringing you human-centered news from across the globe. But we can’t do it without you: We need your support to ensure we can continue this work for another year.

Make a gift today, and you’ll get us one step closer to our goal of raising $25,000 by June 14. We need your help now more than ever!