By Gabriel Stargardter
PARIS, Sept 30 (Reuters) – A French and German delegation travelled this month to Brasilia, where intelligence officials briefed them on alleged US and Russian interference before Brazil’s election, according to sources and documents seen by Reuters.
Officials from Abin, Brazil’s spy agency, “confirmed the existence of interference from the United States as well as Russia,” according to a report of the meetings compiled by an attendee.
The alleged US interference ranged “from lawfare to interference that is openly acknowledged,” the Abin officials said, according to the report. They gave no details of the alleged Russian interference.
The previously unreported visit underlines growing concern on both sides of the Atlantic over US President Donald Trump’s efforts to support MAGA-aligned candidates. It also shows how potential targets of US meddling are now comparing notes.
The first round of Brazil’s election takes place on Sunday, with leftist President Luiz Inacio Lula da Silva in a tight contest against right-wing Senator Flavio Bolsonaro whose father, former President Jair Bolsonaro, is serving a prison term under house arrest for plotting a coup after the 2022 election.
The spectre of US interference to support Flavio Bolsonaro has loomed over the vote, with Lula saying he had warned Trump not to meddle.
The US State Department did not respond to a request for comment. It has previously denied seeking to interfere in Brazil’s elections. Abin and Russia’s embassy in Brazil also did not respond to requests for comment. Moscow has previously denied interfering in other countries’ elections.
TRUMP’S SUPPORT FOR RIGHT-WINGERS TESTS OLD NORMS
The Trump administration’s overt support for right-wing candidates around the world represents a break with longstanding US policies, and poses a challenge for incumbent governments over whether such support counts as foreign interference.
Washington has openly supported ideologically aligned candidates across Europe and Latin America in recent months.
The United States offered a bailout potentially worth $40 billion to boost Argentine President Javier Milei before his difficult midterm elections, while US Vice President JD Vance travelled to Hungary to support former Prime Minister Viktor Orban in his failed reelection bid.
Officials in France, where far-right candidate Marine Le Pen leads in opinion polls, have been vocal about rejecting any US meddling in their domestic affairs. Privately, they say they view Brazil’s election as a potential early warning sign for France’s own presidential election next year.
In Germany, where the far-right Alternative for Germany party came first in elections in two states last month, officials have regularly criticised the Trump administration’s support for the AfD.
EU DELEGATION
The French and German officials visited Brazil from September 9 to 11 as part of a European Union delegation to discuss implementation of the bloc’s Digital Services Act (DSA), which requires online platforms to do more to tackle illegal and harmful content. Washington has been critical of the DSA, which it says unfairly targets US tech giants.
The delegation’s aims in Brazil also included “preparing coordinated responses ahead of the 2026 elections,” according to a document seen by Reuters.
The French officials came from Viginum, a foreign disinformation detection agency, and media and communications regulator Arcom.
The German officials were from the Federal Network Agency, which regulates telecoms, energy, rail and postal services.
Arcom confirmed one of its officials participated in the visit, as did Viginum. Germany’s Federal Network Agency said “possible US meddling in the elections in Germany was not discussed” at the meeting.
A senior Brazilian cyber official who was present at the meeting, and who spoke on condition of anonymity, said the number of cyberattacks in Brazil had nearly doubled compared with 2025, while there had also been a sharp rise in hacks and phishing attempts of the president’s office, which the official said was clearly “election-related.”
(Reporting by Gabriel Stargardter, Editing by Richard Lough and Timothy Heritage)
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