Using the Petrobras fund in actions to fight fires and preserve the Amazon "is not the most appropriate way", said the Minister of the Environment.

This Friday, August 23, the president of the Chamber of Deputies, Rodrigo Maia (DEM), declared that he is in favor of using resources from the Petrobras fund to combat the burnings in the Amazon. This amount corresponds to 80% of the penalties defined in the agreement entered into by the company with US authorities, disclosed in September 2018.

Maia informed that he petitioned the STF for the release of R$ 2,5 billion from Petrobras, R$ 1 billion of which was earmarked for combating fires and the rest for use in education.

Alexandre Moraes, minister of the STF, stipulated a period of 48 hours for the Attorney General's Office (PGR), the Attorney General's Office (AGU), the Attorney General's Office for the National Treasury (PGFN) and the Ministry of Economy return the order.

On Thursday night, the 22nd, President Jair Bolsonaro signaled that he would convene all ministers of State to form a crisis cabinet due to the fires that hit the Amazon region.

During the afternoon, Bolsonaro had already held a meeting with ministers Ricardo Salles (Environment) and Tereza Cristina (Agriculture) to discuss the measures that will be taken to contain the fires.

In a press conference held this Saturday morning, the 24th, to detail the government's actions in combating the fires in the Amazon, Salles said "This is not a matter for our ministry, the resources".

“This allocation of the fund was delimited when the agreement was signed with US entities. A change in destination would imply renegotiating these issues. The most appropriate path is the one indicated by Minister General Fernando”, concluded the minister.

The statement refers to a speech given at the same press conference by Ministry of Defense, General Fernando Azevedo e Silva.

According to him, there are currently around BRL 20 million set aside in his portfolio and the Ministry of Economy has already stated that it intends to release at least part of that amount so that it can be used to preserve the forest. “I only believe it when I open the safe and see it. But it is combined with Paulo Guedes.”

The agreement for the creation of the fund mentioned by Salles was closed in 2018 between the Federal Public Ministry, Petrobras and the US Department of Justice.

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