Stung by a global outcry over deforestation and wildfires in the Amazon rainforest, Brazil has launched a diplomatic offensive to persuade the international community of its environmental credentials. President Jair Bolsonaro’s administration has distributed a 12-page circular to its foreign embassies, outlining data and statistics that diplomats are meant to cite to defend the government’s position on the crisis. The circular, reviewed by Reuters and reported here for the first time, attempts to address 59 areas where Brazil has come under fire, by citing various policies and data.
