Brazil's President Jair Bolsonaro is willing to accept foreign aid for fighting fires devastating the Amazon rainforest, but only if the country controls the funds, his spokesman said Tuesday.

The announcement suggests Bolsonaro has dropped an earlier demand that French President Emmanuel Macron withdraw "insults" made against him before he would accept a G7 offer to help put out the fires in the world's largest rainforest.

"The Brazilian government through President Bolsonaro is open to receiving financial support from organizations and even countries," Otavio Rego Barros told reporters in the capital Brasilia, without referring specifically to the G7's offer.

"The essential point is that this money, on entering Brazil, will be under the control of the Brazilian people."

Bolsonaro has been involved in an escalating war of words with Macron over the worst fires to hit the Amazon in years -- blazes that have sparked a global outcry and threatened to torpedo a huge trade deal between the European Union and South American countries.

A top Brazilian official on Monday rejected the G7 countries' offer of $20 million to combat the fires devastating the forest in Brazil and Bolivia, saying Macron should take care of "his home and his colonies."

"Mr Macron must withdraw the insults he made against me," Bolsonaro told reporters in the capital Brasilia earlier Tuesday.

"To talk or accept anything from France, with the best possible intentions, he has to withdraw these words, and from there we can talk."

Macron and Bolsonaro have repeatedly locked horns in the past week, with the French leader accusing Bolsonaro of lying to him about his commitments on climate change and vowing to block the EU-Mercosur trade deal involving Brazil that took decades to negotiate.

On Monday, Macron rebuked the "extraordinarily rude" Bolsonaro after the Brazilian leader personally expressed approval for a Facebook post implying that Brigitte Macron was not as attractive as his own first lady, Michelle Bolsonaro.

Bolsonaro has hit back, accusing Macron of treating Brazil like "a colony or no-man's land."

The latest official figures show 1,659 new fires were started in Brazil between Sunday and Monday, taking the total this year to 82,285 -- the highest since at least 2013 -- even as military aircraft and troops help battle the blazes.

More than half of the fires are in the massive Amazon basin.

The governors of several states in the Amazon told Bolsonaro in a meeting Tuesday that international help was needed.

Their plea comes after Norway and Germany halted around $70 million in Amazon protection subsidies earlier this month.

Bolsonaro -- a climate-change skeptic -- has faced criticism at home over his delayed response to the fires, and thousands have protested in Brazil in recent days to denounce the destruction.

But U.S. President Donald Trump tweeted that the Brazilian leader was "working very hard on the Amazon fires and in all respects doing a great job for the people of Brazil - Not easy."

In response, Bolsonaro replied: "We're fighting the wildfires with great success. Brazil is and will always be an international reference in sustainable development."

"The fake news campaign built against our sovereignty will not work. The US can always count on Brazil."

In the hard-hit northwestern state of Rondonia, thick smoke has choked the capital Porto Velho in recent days as fires blacken swaths of the rainforest.

Defense Minister Fernando Azevedo e Silva on Monday said the fires were "under control."

"It has been exaggerated a little that the situation was out of control -- it wasn't," he said. "The situation isn't simple but it is under control."

Nearly 2,500 troops and 15 aircraft, including two C-130 Hercules, have been deployed, according to the defense ministry, which has published satellite data it says show a reduction in the number of fires in the nine states spanning the Amazon.

More than 43,000 troops were available to help put out fires, the government said previously.

Rain in some of the affected areas is also helping.

Experts say increased land clearing during the months-long dry season to make way for crops or grazing has aggravated the recurring problem this year.

Although about 60 percent of the Amazon is in Brazil, the vast forest also spreads over parts of eight other countries or territories, including the French overseas territory of Guiana on the continent's northeast coast.

Bolivia's leftist President Evo Morales on Tuesday gave a half-hearted welcome to the G7 aid pledge, which he described as "tiny."

Morales and his rival for the Bolivian presidency have suspended campaigning to deal with the voracious fires that the president said had destroyed 1.2 million hectares, or more than 4,000 square miles, of forest and grassland since May. </s> On Sunday, French President Emmanuel Macron said that leaders of G7 countries agreed to help the countries of the Amazon basin to deal with forest fires that he described as a serious international crisis, while criticizing his Brazilian counterpart, Jair Bolsonaro, for not following his obligations to combat climate change.

The Brazilian government has rejected an offer of aid by the G7 countries to deal with the Amazon fires , according to AFP.

"We appreciate [the offer], but maybe those resources are more relevant to reforest Europe," Onyx Lorenzoni, chief of staff to President Jair Bolsonaro, told the G1 news website, as cited by AFP.

On Monday, Macron announced that the G7 would "immediately send to the Amazon countries... financial support worth at least about 20 million euros."

The Amazon rainforest, which produces about 20 percent of the Earth's atmosphere's oxygen, is burning from wildfires at a record rate and has drawn international attention.

Environmental activists have been staging protests at Brazilian embassies worldwide and accusing Brazilian President Jair Bolsonaro of supporting farmers who are burning the rainforest to expand farming land.

On Saturday, the Brazilian authorities deployed troops in an attempt to fight the environmental disaster. </s> Amid smoke from forest fires, cattle graze on a farm along the road to Jacunda National Forest, near the city of Porto Velho in the Vila Nova Samuel region which is part of Brazil’s Amazon, Monday, Aug. 26, 2019. The Group of Seven nations on Monday pledged tens of millions of dollars to help Amazon countries fight raging wildfires, even as Brazilian President Jair Bolsonaro accused rich countries of treating the region like a “colony.” (AP Photo/Eraldo Peres)

PORTO VELHO, Brazil (AP) — Acrimony between Brazil and European countries seeking to help fight Amazon fires deepened on Tuesday, jeopardizing hopes of global unity over how to protect a region seen as vital to the health of the planet.

A personal spat between the leaders of Brazil and France seemed to dominate the dispute, but it also centered on Brazilian perceptions of alleged interference by Europe on matters of sovereignty, economic development and the rights of indigenous people. Brazil said it will set conditions for accepting any aid from the Group of Seven nations, which offered tens of millions of dollars for firefighting and rainforest protections.

The Amazon’s rainforests are a major absorber of carbon dioxide, considered a critical defense against rising temperatures and other disruptions caused by climate change. While many of the recorded fires this year were set in already deforested areas by people clearing land for cultivation or pasture, Brazilian government figures indicate that they are much more widespread this year, suggesting the threat to the vast ecosystem is intensifying.

The effect of the fires was evident in the Amazonian city of Porto Velho, where smoke drifted over the sky for parts of the day. Elane Diaz, a nurse in the city, spoke about respiratory problems while waiting for a doctor’s appointment at a hospital with her 5-year-old-son Eduardo.

“The kids are affected the most. They’re coughing a lot,” Diaz said. “They have problems breathing. I’m concerned because it affects their health.”

Still, Diaz and some other residents in Porto Velho, the capital of Rondonia state, were supportive of Brazilian President Jair Bolsonaro, saying he was doing what he could to protect the Amazon and that international criticism was unfounded.

“Germany had already been helping through NGOs and they couldn’t prevent this,” said Mona Lisa Pereira, an agronomist. “It seems like this is the fire of a lifetime. But it’s not. We have fires every year.”

Bolsonaro, who took office this year with a promise to boost development in Latin America’s biggest economy, has questioned whether offers of international aid mask a plot to exploit the Amazon’s resources and weaken Brazilian growth. On Tuesday, he said French President Emmanuel Macron had called him a liar and that he would have to apologize before Brazil considers accepting rainforest aid.

Macron has to retract those comments “and then we can speak,” Bolsonaro said.

In a video message, Brazilian novelist Paulo Coelho offered an apology to France for what he called Bolsonaro’s “hysteria,” saying the Brazilian government had resorted to insults to dodge responsibility for the Amazon fires.

Bolsonaro met governors of states in the Amazon region, some of whom criticized laws that protect the environment and the rights of indigenous people that they said limited opportunities for economic development.

Marcos Jose Rocha dos Santos, the governor of Rondonia state, questioned the intentions of international aid.

“International resources are welcome as long as who uses those resources is us,” Rocha dos Santos said. “We will determine where the money will be applied, it’s useless if those resources get here and go to international NGOs.”

At a summit in France on Monday, the G-7 nations pledged $20 million to help fight the flames in the Amazon and protect the rainforest, in addition to a separate $12 million from Britain and $11 million from Canada.

Onyx Lorenzoni, the Brazilian president’s chief of staff, sharpened the criticism, saying Europe should use the funds for its own problems.

“Macron could not avoid an obvious fire in a church that is a world heritage site,” Lorenzoni told the G1 news website, referring to the Notre Dame Cathedral that was ravaged by fire in April.

Macron, who has questioned Bolsonaro’s trustworthiness and commitment to protecting biodiversity, shrugged off the snub from the Brazilian president. The French leader said Bolsonaro’s interpretation was a “mistake” and that the aid offer is “a sign of friendship.”

He said the aid money isn’t just aimed at Brazil, but at nine countries in the vast Amazon region that also spans Bolivia, Colombia, Venezuela, Ecuador, Peru, Guyana, Suriname and French Guiana, an overseas region of France. About 60% of the Amazon region is in Brazil.

Even so, Macron has threatened to block a European Union trade deal with several South American states, including Brazil. He has also acknowledged that Europe, by importing soya from Brazil, shares some blame for agricultural pressure on the rainforest. Bolsonaro has previously said he wants to convert land for more cattle pastures and soybean farms.

In contrast to the tension between France and Brazil, U.S. President Donald Trump praised the Brazilian president. “He is working very hard on the Amazon fires and in all respects doing a great job for the people of Brazil – Not easy,” Trump tweeted Tuesday.

Bolsonaro also said that Japan is “extremely aligned with us” and seeks a deeper trade partnership with South American nations.

Brazil’s National Space Research Institute, which monitors deforestation, said the number of fires has risen by 85% to more than 77,000 in the last year, a record since the institute began keeping track in 2013. About half of the fires were in the Amazon region, with most just in the past month.

Neighboring Bolivia is battling its own vast blazes. The largest are in the Chiquitanía region, a zone of dry forest, farmland and open prairies that has seen an expansion of farming and ranching. President Evo Morales, who has been under criticism for an allegedly slow response to the fires, was in the region on Tuesday overseeing firefighting efforts involving more than 3,500 people, including soldiers, police and volunteers.

The Amazon has experienced an increased rate of fires during drought periods in the last 20 years, but the phenomenon this year is “unusual” because drought has not yet hit, said Laura Schneider of Rutgers University-New Brunswick.

Schneider, an associate professor in the geography department, said fire is commonly used by people to clear land for cultivation, and the actual area burned this year must be measured for an accurate comparison with damage in past years.

The funds offered this week by the world’s richest countries are widely viewed as useful but insufficient for dealing with the threats to the Amazon in the long term. Under international pressure, Bolsonaro has said he would make 44,000 troops available to fight the blazes.

However, federal prosecutors in the Amazon state of Para said they had warned Brazil’s environmental protection agency about a “fire day” organized by farmers earlier this month to clear land. The agency said it lacked support from military police to protect its field teams in risky monitoring operations, according to prosecutors.

Grace Quale, a laboratory technician at the 9 of July hospital in Porto Velho, said more people were undergoing tests because of respiratory problems caused by smoke. Children and the elderly are suffering the most, said Quale, who supports Bolsonaro and believes fires are being set by opponents trying to discredit him.

“What’s happening is disrespectful to our humans, to our animals, because if they end the Amazon, how will we survive?” she said.

Torchia reported from Rio de Janeiro. Associated Press writers Anna Jean Kaiser in Rio de Janeiro and Carlos Valdez in La Paz, Bolivia, contributed to this report. </s> Amid smoke from forest fires, cattle graze on a farm along the road to Jacunda National Forest, near the city of Porto Velho in the Vila Nova Samuel region which is part of Brazil’s Amazon, Monday, Aug. 26, 2019. The Group of Seven nations on Monday pledged tens of millions of dollars to help Amazon countries fight raging wildfires, even as Brazilian President Jair Bolsonaro accused rich countries of treating the region like a “colony.” (AP Photo/Eraldo Peres)

PORTO VELHO, Brazil (AP) — Acrimony between Brazil and European countries seeking to help fight Amazon fires deepened on Tuesday, jeopardizing hopes of global unity over how to protect a region seen as vital to the health of the planet.

A personal spat between the leaders of Brazil and France seemed to dominate the dispute, but it also centered on Brazilian perceptions of alleged interference by Europe on matters of sovereignty, economic development and the rights of indigenous people. Brazil said it will set conditions for accepting any aid from the Group of Seven nations, which offered tens of millions of dollars for firefighting and rainforest protections.

The Amazon’s rainforests are a major absorber of carbon dioxide, considered a critical defense against rising temperatures and other disruptions caused by climate change. While many of the recorded fires this year were set in already deforested areas by people clearing land for cultivation or pasture, Brazilian government figures indicate that they are much more widespread this year, suggesting the threat to the vast ecosystem is intensifying.

The effect of the fires was evident in the Amazonian city of Porto Velho, where a thick pall of smoke covered the sky for most of the day. Elane Diaz, a nurse in the city, spoke about respiratory problems while waiting for a doctor’s appointment at a hospital with her 5-year-old-son Eduardo.

“The kids are affected the most. They’re coughing a lot,” Diaz said. “They have problems breathing. I’m concerned because it affects their health.”

Still, Diaz and some other residents in Porto Velho, the capital of Rondonia state, were supportive of Brazilian President Jair Bolsonaro, saying he was doing what he could to protect the Amazon and that international criticism was unfounded.

“Germany had already been helping through NGOs and they couldn’t prevent this,” said Mona Lisa Pereira, an agronomist. “It seems like this is the fire of a lifetime. But it’s not. We have fires every year.”

Bolsonaro, who took office this year with a promise to boost development in Latin America’s biggest economy, has questioned whether offers of international aid mask a plot to exploit the Amazon’s resources and weaken Brazilian growth. On Tuesday, he said French President Emmanuel Macron had called him a liar and that he would have to apologize before Brazil considers accepting rainforest aid.

Macron has to retract those comments “and then we can speak,” Bolsonaro said.

In a video message, Brazilian novelist Paulo Coelho offered an apology to France for what he called Bolsonaro’s “hysteria,” saying the Brazilian government had resorted to insults to dodge responsibility for the Amazon fires.

Bolsonaro met governors of states in the Amazon region, some of whom criticized laws that protect the environment and the rights of indigenous people that they said limited opportunities for economic development.

Marcos Jose Rocha dos Santos, the governor of Rondonia state, questioned the intentions of international aid.

“International resources are welcome as long as who uses those resources is us,” Rocha dos Santos said. “We will determine where the money will be applied, it’s useless if those resources get here and go to international NGOs.”

At a summit in France on Monday, the G-7 nations pledged $20 million to help fight the flames in the Amazon and protect the rainforest, in addition to a separate $12 million from Britain and $11 million from Canada.

Onyx Lorenzoni, the Brazilian president’s chief of staff, sharpened the criticism, saying Europe should use the funds for its own problems.

“Macron could not avoid an obvious fire in a church that is a world heritage site,” Lorenzoni told the G1 news website, referring to the Notre Dame Cathedral that was ravaged by fire in April.

Macron, who has questioned Bolsonaro’s trustworthiness and commitment to protecting biodiversity, shrugged off the snub from the Brazilian president. The French leader said Bolsonaro’s interpretation was a “mistake” and that the aid offer is “a sign of friendship.”

He said the aid money isn’t just aimed at Brazil, but at nine countries in the vast Amazon region that also spans Bolivia, Colombia, Venezuela, Ecuador, Peru, Guyana, Suriname and French Guiana, an overseas region of France. About 60% of the Amazon region is in Brazil.

Even so, Macron has threatened to block a European Union trade deal with several South American states, including Brazil. He has also acknowledged that Europe, by importing soya from Brazil, shares some blame for agricultural pressure on the rainforest. Bolsonaro has previously said he wants to convert land for more cattle pastures and soybean farms.

In contrast to the tension between France and Brazil, U.S. President Donald Trump praised the Brazilian president. “He is working very hard on the Amazon fires and in all respects doing a great job for the people of Brazil – Not easy,” Trump tweeted Tuesday.

Bolsonaro also said that Japan is “extremely aligned with us” and seeks a deeper trade partnership with South American nations.

Brazil’s National Space Research Institute, which monitors deforestation, said the number of fires has risen by 85% to more than 77,000 in the last year, a record since the institute began keeping track in 2013. About half of the fires were in the Amazon region, with most just in the past month.

Neighboring Bolivia is battling its own vast blazes. The largest are in the Chiquitanía region, a zone of dry forest, farmland and open prairies that has seen an expansion of farming and ranching. President Evo Morales, who has been under criticism for an allegedly slow response to the fires, was in the region on Tuesday overseeing firefighting efforts involving more than 3,500 people, including soldiers, police and volunteers.

The Amazon has experienced an increased rate of fires during drought periods in the last 20 years, but the phenomenon this year is “unusual” because drought has not yet hit, said Laura Schneider of Rutgers University-New Brunswick.

Schneider, an associate professor in the geography department, said fire is commonly used by people to clear land for cultivation, and the actual area burned this year must be measured for an accurate comparison with damage in past years.

The funds offered this week by the world’s richest countries are widely viewed as useful but insufficient for dealing with the threats to the Amazon in the long term. Under international pressure, Bolsonaro has said he would make 44,000 troops available to fight the blazes.

However, federal prosecutors in the Amazon state of Para said they had warned Brazil’s environmental protection agency about a “fire day” organized by farmers earlier this month to clear land. The agency said it lacked support from military police to protect its field teams in risky monitoring operations, according to prosecutors.

Grace Quale, a laboratory technician at the 9 of July hospital in Porto Velho, said more people were undergoing tests because of respiratory problems caused by smoke. Children and the elderly are suffering the most, said Quale, who supports Bolsonaro and believes fires are being set by opponents trying to discredit him.

“What’s happening is disrespectful to our humans, to our animals, because if they end the Amazon, how will we survive?” she said.

Torchia reported from Rio de Janeiro. Associated Press writers Anna Jean Kaiser in Rio de Janeiro and Carlos Valdez in La Paz, Bolivia, contributed to this report. </s> US President Donald Trump on Tuesday offered Brazilian leader Jair Bolsonaro the full support of the United States as Brazil continues to battle wildfires in the Amazon rainforest

WASHINGTON (UrduPoint News / Sputnik - 27th August, 2019) US President Donald Trump on Tuesday offered Brazilian leader Jair Bolsonaro the full support of the United States as Brazil continues to battle wildfires in the Amazon rainforest.

"I have gotten to know President [Jair Bolsonaro] well in our dealings with Brazil," Trump said in a statement posted on Twitter. "He is working very hard on the Amazon fires and in all respects doing a great job for the people of Brazil - Not easy. He and his country have the full and complete support of the USA!"

On Monday, French President Emmanuel Macron said that the Group of Seven industrialized countries will urgently allocate about 20 million euro [$22.

2 million] to help extinguish the fires.

The Amazon rainforest, which produces about 20 percent of the Earth atmosphere's oxygen, is burning from wildfires at a record rate and has drawn international attention.

Environmental activists have been staging protests at Brazilian embassies worldwide and accusing Bolsonaro of supporting farmers who are burning the rainforest to expand farming land.

On Saturday, the Brazilian authorities deployed troops in an attempt to fight the fires. </s> The office for the French president declined to comment.

The fires are not limited to Brazil, with at least 10,000 sq km (about 3,800 sq miles) burning in Bolivia, near its border with Paraguay and Brazil. (Photo: AP)

Brazil: Brazil said on Tuesday it was ready to accept foreign aid to help fight fires in the Amazon but only if it could determine how it was spent, in an apparent attempt to smooth over a public spat between the Brazilian and French presidents.

The comments by presidential spokesman Rego Barros came after governors of states in the Brazilian Amazon told President Jair Bolsonaro that they needed the money to help fight the record wildfires in the world’s largest tropical rainforest.

“The Brazilian government, through its president, is open to receiving financial support from organizations and countries. This money, when it enters the country, will have the total governance of the Brazilian people,” Barros said.

Separately, a diplomatic source in Brasilia told Reuters the Brazilian government had also accepted 10 million pounds from Britain to fight the fires. Bolsonaro’s press office was not immediately available to comment on the information.

Earlier on Tuesday, Bolsonaro had said he would only consider accepting a USD 20 million offer of aid from the Group of Seven wealthy nations if French President Emmanuel Macron withdrew the “insults” against him.

Bolsonaro and Macron have been embroiled in a deeply personal and public war of words in recent days, with Bolsonaro mocking Macron’s wife and accusing the French leader of disrespecting Brazil’s sovereignty. Macron has called Bolsonaro a liar and said Brazilian women are “probably ashamed” of him.

The office for the French president declined to comment.

Brazil’s president is finding himself increasingly isolated on the global stage over his response to the blazes, which threaten what many view as a key bulwark against global climate change.

The far-right government’s response could threaten Brazil’s trade deals and powerful agribusiness sector, which is a crucial driver of its recession-plagued economy.

“We think that it’s not the moment to turn down money,” Flávio Dino, the governor of Maranhao state, told reporters after a meeting in which Bolsonaro pledged to agree on a package of legislative measures with the states by September 5 to help prevent the surge in forest fires happening again.

“The anti-environment rhetoric could expose Brazil to international sanctions,” Dino said.

The number of blazes in Brazil has skyrocketed 80 per cent in the year to date compared to the same period in 2018, according to data from space research agency INPE.

About 90 km (55 miles) from Porto Velho, in the Amazon state of Rondonia, a Reuters witness saw houses abandoned due to the fierce forest fires. There were isolated patches of rain on Tuesday, but not enough to put out the fires, he said.

Widespread rain that could snuff the fires out are likely weeks away, according to weather data and two experts.

A local farmer, who declined to give his name, said he expected the fires to worsen next week when the forest is usually at its driest.

G7 leaders pledged the USD 20 million after discussing the fires ravaging an area often dubbed “the lungs of the world”.

The offer, which was made at a summit in France on Monday, has stirred up emotions within Bolsonaro’s nationalist government. Some officials are grateful for the much-needed help, and others view it as a colonial gesture that undermines Brazil’s control of its lands.

Bolsonaro raised Macron’s ire on Sunday when the Brazilian leader responded to a Facebook post that compared the looks of his wife Michelle, 37, with Macron’s 66-year-old wife Brigitte. “Do not humiliate the man hahahah,” Bolsonaro wrote.

Macron, who has accused Bolsonaro of lying about climate change policy, called the remarks “extremely disrespectful” to his wife.

Read | 'Macron to withdraw 'insults' for Brazil to accept aid for Amazon fire: Bolsonaro

On Tuesday morning, Bolsonaro said he would only countenance accepting G7 money if Macron retracted his earlier comments.

“First of all, Macron has to withdraw his insults. He called me a liar. Before we talk or accept anything from France ... he must withdraw these words then we can talk,” Bolsonaro told reporters in Brasilia. “First he withdraws, then offers (aid), then I will answer.”

Barros, the president’s official spokesman, told reporters later that Brazil was open to accepting international aid if it could decide how the money is spent.

US President Donald Trump on Tuesday tweeted his support for Bolsonaro, an ideological ally on the environment, China and trade.

The Brazilian president “is working very hard on the Amazon fires and in all respects doing a great job for the people of Brazil - Not easy. He and his country have the full and complete support of the USA!” Trump tweeted.

Bolsonaro responded, also on Twitter: “We’re fighting the wildfires with great success. Brazil is and will always be an international reference in sustainable development.”

The fires are not limited to Brazil, with at least 10,000 sq km (about 3,800 sq miles) burning in Bolivia, near its border with Paraguay and Brazil.

Neighbours Peru and Colombia on Tuesday asked Bolsonaro to attend a meeting on Sept. 6 to discuss the disaster and come up with a long-term coordinated plan to stop deforestation. </s> BRASILIA/PORTO VELHO, Brazil (Reuters) - Brazil said on Tuesday it was ready to accept foreign aid to help fight fires in the Amazon but only if it could determine how it was spent, in an apparent attempt to smooth over a public spat between the Brazilian and French presidents.

The comments by presidential spokesman Rego Barros came after governors of states in the Brazilian Amazon told President Jair Bolsonaro that they needed the money to help fight the record wildfires in the world’s largest tropical rainforest.

“The Brazilian government, through its president, is open to receiving financial support from organizations and countries. This money, when it enters the country, will have the total governance of the Brazilian people,” Barros said.

Separately, a diplomatic source in Brasilia told Reuters the Brazilian government had also accepted 10 million pounds from Britain to fight the fires. Bolsonaro’s press office was not immediately available to comment on the information.

Earlier on Tuesday, Bolsonaro had said he would only consider accepting a $20 million offer of aid from the Group of Seven wealthy nations if French President Emmanuel Macron withdrew the “insults” against him.

Bolsonaro and Macron have been embroiled in a deeply personal and public war of words in recent days, with Bolsonaro mocking Macron’s wife and accusing the French leader of disrespecting Brazil’s sovereignty. Macron has called Bolsonaro a liar and said Brazilian women are “probably ashamed” of him.

The office for the French president declined to comment.

Brazil’s president is finding himself increasingly isolated on the global stage over his response to the blazes, which threaten what many view as a key bulwark against global climate change.

The far-right government’s response could threaten Brazil’s trade deals and powerful agribusiness sector, which is a crucial driver of its recession-plagued economy.

“We think that it’s not the moment to turn down money,” Flávio Dino, the governor of Maranhao state, told reporters after a meeting in which Bolsonaro pledged to agree on a package of legislative measures with the states by Sept. 5 to help prevent the surge in forest fires happening again.

“The anti-environment rhetoric could expose Brazil to international sanctions,” Dino said.

The number of blazes in Brazil has skyrocketed 80% in the year to date compared to the same period in 2018, according to data from space research agency INPE.

About 90 km (55 miles) from Porto Velho, in the Amazon state of Rondonia, a Reuters witness saw houses abandoned due to the fierce forest fires. There were isolated patches of rain on Tuesday, but not enough to put out the fires, he said.

Widespread rain that could snuff the fires out are likely weeks away, according to weather data and two experts.

A local farmer, who declined to give his name, said he expected the fires to worsen next week when the forest is usually at its driest.

G7 leaders pledged the $20 million after discussing the fires ravaging an area often dubbed “the lungs of the world”.

The offer, which was made at a summit in France on Monday, has stirred up emotions within Bolsonaro’s nationalist government. Some officials are grateful for the much-needed help, and others view it as a colonial gesture that undermines Brazil’s control of its lands.

Bolsonaro raised Macron’s ire on Sunday when the Brazilian leader responded to a Facebook post that compared the looks of his wife Michelle, 37, with Macron’s 66-year-old wife Brigitte. “Do not humiliate the man hahahah,” Bolsonaro wrote.

Macron, who has accused Bolsonaro of lying about climate change policy, called the remarks “extremely disrespectful” to his wife.

On Tuesday morning, Bolsonaro said he would only countenance accepting G7 money if Macron retracted his earlier comments.

“First of all, Macron has to withdraw his insults. He called me a liar. Before we talk or accept anything from France ... he must withdraw these words then we can talk,” Bolsonaro told reporters in Brasilia. “First he withdraws, then offers (aid), then I will answer.”

Barros, the president’s official spokesman, told reporters later that Brazil was open to accepting international aid if it could decide how the money is spent.

U.S. President Donald Trump on Tuesday tweeted his support for Bolsonaro, an ideological ally on the environment, China and trade.

The Brazilian president “is working very hard on the Amazon fires and in all respects doing a great job for the people of Brazil - Not easy. He and his country have the full and complete support of the USA!” Trump tweeted.

Bolsonaro responded, also on Twitter: “We’re fighting the wildfires with great success. Brazil is and will always be an international reference in sustainable development.”

The fires are not limited to Brazil, with at least 10,000 sq km (about 3,800 sq miles) burning in Bolivia, near its border with Paraguay and Brazil.

Neighbors Peru and Colombia on Tuesday asked Bolsonaro to attend a meeting on Sept. 6 to discuss the disaster and come up with a long-term coordinated plan to stop deforestation.

Norway’s environment minister on Tuesday urged representatives of oil firm Equinor, fertilizer-maker Yara and aluminium producer Norsk Hydro to make sure their supply chains in Brazil are not linked to deforestation. </s> BRASILIA, Aug 28 — Brazil said yesterday it was ready to accept foreign aid to help fight fires in the Amazon but only if it could determine how it was spent, in an apparent attempt to smooth over a public spat between the Brazilian and French presidents.

The comments by presidential spokesman Rego Barros came after governors of states in the Brazilian Amazon told President Jair Bolsonaro that they needed the money to help fight the record wildfires in the world's largest tropical rainforest.

“The Brazilian government, through its president, is open to receiving financial support from organisations and countries. This money, when it enters the country, will have the total governance of the Brazilian people,” Barros said.

Separately, a diplomatic source in Brasilia told Reuters the Brazilian government had also accepted £10 million (RM51.4 million) from Britain to fight the fires. Bolsonaro's press office was not immediately available to comment on the information.

Earlier yesterday, Bolsonaro had said he would only consider accepting a US$20 million (RM84 million) offer of aid from the Group of Seven wealthy nations if French President Emmanuel Macron withdrew the "insults" against him.

Bolsonaro and Macron have been embroiled in a deeply personal and public war of words in recent days, with Bolsonaro mocking Macron's wife and accusing the French leader of disrespecting Brazil's sovereignty. Macron has called Bolsonaro a liar and said Brazilian women are “probably ashamed” of him.

The office for the French president declined to comment.

Brazil's president is finding himself increasingly isolated on the global stage over his response to the blazes, which threaten what many view as a key bulwark against global climate change.

The far-right government's response could threaten Brazil's trade deals and powerful agribusiness sector, which is a crucial driver of its recession-plagued economy.

“We think that it's not the moment to turn down money,” Flávio Dino, the governor of Maranhao state, told reporters after a meeting in which Bolsonaro pledged to agree on a package of legislative measures with the states by September 5 to help prevent the surge in forest fires happening again.

“The anti-environment rhetoric could expose Brazil to international sanctions,” Dino said.

The number of blazes in Brazil has skyrocketed 80 per cent in the year to date compared to the same period in 2018, according to data from space research agency INPE.

About 90 km from Porto Velho, in the Amazon state of Rondonia, a Reuters witness saw houses abandoned due to the fierce forest fires. There were isolated patches of rain on Tuesday, but not enough to put out the fires, he said.

Widespread rain that could snuff the fires out are likely weeks away, according to weather data and two experts.

A local farmer, who declined to give his name, said he expected the fires to worsen next week when the forest is usually at its driest.

G7 leaders pledged the US$20 million after discussing the fires ravaging an area often dubbed "the lungs of the world."

The offer, which was made at a summit in France on Monday, has stirred up emotions within Bolsonaro's nationalist government. Some officials are grateful for the much-needed help, and others view it as a colonial gesture that undermines Brazil's control of its lands.

Bolsonaro raised Macron's ire on Sunday when the Brazilian leader responded to a Facebook post that compared the looks of his wife Michelle, 37, with Macron’s 66-year-old wife Brigitte. “Do not humiliate the man hahahah,” Bolsonaro wrote.

Macron, who has accused Bolsonaro of lying about climate change policy, called the remarks “extremely disrespectful” to his wife.

Yesterday morning, Bolsonaro said he would only countenance accepting G7 money if Macron retracted his earlier comments.

“First of all, Macron has to withdraw his insults. He called me a liar. Before we talk or accept anything from France ... he must withdraw these words then we can talk,” Bolsonaro told reporters in Brasilia. “First he withdraws, then offers (aid), then I will answer.”

Barros, the president's official spokesman, told reporters later that Brazil was open to accepting international aid if it could decide how the money is spent.

US President Donald Trump yesterday tweeted his support for Bolsonaro, an ideological ally on the environment, China and trade.

The Brazilian president “is working very hard on the Amazon fires and in all respects doing a great job for the people of Brazil — Not easy. He and his country have the full and complete support of the USA!” Trump tweeted.

Bolsonaro responded, also on Twitter: "We're fighting the wildfires with great success. Brazil is and will always be an international reference in sustainable development."

The fires are not limited to Brazil, with at least 10,000 sq km burning in Bolivia, near its border with Paraguay and Brazil.

Neighbours Peru and Colombia yestetrday asked Bolsonaro to attend a meeting on September 6 to discuss the disaster and come up with a long-term coordinated plan to stop deforestation.

Norway's environment minister yesterday urged representatives of oil firm Equinor, fertiliser-maker Yara and aluminium producer Norsk Hydro to make sure their supply chains in Brazil are not linked to deforestation. — Reuters </s> Brazilian President Jair Bolsonaro has hit back at reports accusing the government of devastating the Amazon (AFP Photo/EVARISTO SA)

Brasília (AFP) - The head of Brazil's National Institute for Space Research said Friday he was going to be sacked following a row with President Jair Bolsonaro over deforestation in the Amazon rainforest.

Ricardo Galvao had accused far-right Bolsonaro of "cowardice" for publicly questioning satellite data produced by the INPE institute that showed Amazon rainforest deforestation had increased 88 percent on-year in June.

"My words about the president have caused annoyance, so I'm going to be fired," said Galvao.

Two weeks ago, Bolsonaro had told reporters: "With all the devastation that you are accusing us of doing... the Amazon region would already have been extinguished."

Bolsonaro, a climate change skeptic, also called on Galvao "to come to Brasilia to explain the data that was released to the press."

The president has previously floated the idea of opening up protected rainforest areas to agriculture, a highly controversial move given the existing level of deforestation.

In his row with Galvao, Bolsonaro suggested the INPE president is "in the service of some NGOs."

A day later, Galvao hit back, blasting Bolsonaro for making "undue accusations against people of the highest level of Brazilian science" and comparing his suspicions to "a joke by a 14-year-old boy."

Bolsonaro upped the ante on Thursday, claiming the INPE figures "don't correspond to the truth" and were damaging to the institute and the country.

Galvao previously insisted he wouldn't resign, but speaking on Friday he admitted he had discussed the possibility he might be fired with the Minister for Science and Technology, Marcos Pontes.

Galvao told the press that his dismissal wouldn't affect INPE, an institution of international repute.

The latest data released by INPE shows that deforestation has increased 40 percent in the last two months alone.
The Brazilian government through President Jair Messias Bolsonaro is open to accepting financial aid from organizations and foreign countries to help fight fires in the Amazon rainforest on the condition that the funds must be under the country's control.