Asunción, Agencia IP.- The government of Paraguay has announced that it has summoned the Brazilian ambassador to request «detailed explanations about the intelligence action,» which was confirmed last Monday and would involve the hacking of high-ranking officials.
Until Brazil provides the necessary statements, negotiations regarding Annex C of the Itaipu Treaty are also suspended, according to a statement released on Tuesday, April 1, by ministers Rubén Ramírez, Javier Giménez, and Gustavo Villate.
The Brazilian ambassador to Paraguay, José Antonio Marcondes, will be handed a note requesting detailed explanations regarding the actions disclosed yesterday by a Brazilian media outlet. «This violates international law, and we need all the clarifications to our satisfaction,» said Foreign Minister Rubén Ramírez.
A Brazilian media outlet published the statements of two agents from the Brazilian Intelligence Agency (ABIN) as part of an investigation. These agents allegedly had direct involvement in a hacking and espionage operation targeting Paraguayan government officials during negotiations over the Itaipu tariff and the upcoming review of Annex C in June 2022. Brazil’s Ministry of Foreign Affairs confirmed that the government of Jair Bolsonaro authorized the espionage activities, which were canceled on March 27, 2023, when the incoming government of Lula Da Silva changed the ABIN director.
Annex C
«During these nine months (between June 2022 and March 2023), we do not know what actions were taken. What the Government of Paraguay is doing is asking the Government of Brazil for explanations, while at the same time suspending indefinitely any negotiations regarding Annex C because we need to restore trust,» said Minister of Industry and Commerce (MIC) Javier Giménez heads the negotiation team.
«The explanations must be detailed and restore the trust we need to carry out this negotiation, which is inherently complex and important and requires us to take it seriously,» he continued.
Representatives of both governments agreed in February to set May 30 as the date for signing the new Annex C of Itaipu. This document establishes the financial foundations of the hydroelectric plant shared by Paraguay and Brazil.
MITIC investigation
Minister of MITIC Gustavo Villate indicated that there had been no reports of cybersecurity or intelligence from the previous government regarding the breach of any computer systems belonging to institutions or officials.
«Today, we cannot identify or know what was done. We have started the investigation to see if any event was related to this incident (the espionage operation). We guarantee that we are taking all necessary actions. What is in question is what happened when the systems may have been compromised,» he stated.