Rio mounts major security operation for BRICS summit

Rio de Janeiro is rolling out one of its largest peacetime security operations in recent memory as leaders and senior officials from the Global South’s major emerging economies convene in the coastal city for this week’s BRICS summit.

Officials say about 20,000 military personnel will be deployed to guard leaders from 28 countries and seven international organizations, including the UN and the World Bank.

Airspace over the summit venue, Rio’s Museum of Modern Art, will be strictly controlled. Armed fighter jets will patrol the skies to intercept unauthorised aircraft. In extreme cases, Brazil’s air force has authority to shoot down planes that pose a threat and refuse to comply with orders.

For security reasons, Santos Dumont Airport, the main airport for domestic flights in Rio, just minutes from the summit venue, will close during the meetings.

Flights will be rerouted through Galeão International Airport, the city’s international terminal. Only planes carrying government officials and security teams will be able to use Santos Dumont Airport.

Brazil last used armed fighter jets to secure a major event during the 2016 Olympics. Officials have not disclosed how many aircraft will be in the air, but at least two F-5EM jets, capable of speeds near 2,000km/h and armed with Brazilian-made Piranha missiles and US-built Sidewinders, will be on standby to enforce the no-fly zone.

This special security arrangement was not used at other large-scale events, such as the World Cup or during the G20 summit last year.

Taking place on July 6–7, the summit will draw top leaders from Brazil, Russia, India, China, South Africa, and several of the bloc’s newly admitted members, such as Indonesia, Iran, and Ethiopia.

Countries including Malaysia, Mexico, Turkey, and Saudi Arabia – which was invited to join Brics last year – are also sending delegations. Vietnam, a Brics partner which recently finalised a trade deal with the US, will be represented as well.

According to the commander of aerospace operations, Air Force Lieutenant Brigadier Alcides Teixeira Barbacovi, the missiles will be used if it is necessary to intercept aircraft that pose a threat.

“We will identify aircraft ... so that if one of them has to be prevented from flying, it can land, take off or crash somewhere where there are no crowds of people or where it does not come close to Rio de Janeiro’s downtown, which is one of our priorities to ensure the safety of everyone involved in the summit,” Barbacovi told reporters on Wednesday.

Around 670 people were mobilised for aerospace defence during the event.

Air force officials have also positioned anti-drone equipment throughout the city and established an exclusion zone banning the use of drones throughout the city and metropolitan area until July 9.

Along with airspace restrictions, federal police deployed snipers on balconies of buildings near the hotels housing the leaders. On Saturday, special forces also staged a mock chemical gas attack targeting a crowd gathered for an official’s arrival.

The gathering carries added weight this year, with renewed global attention on the bloc’s influence and unity in light of US President Donald Trump’s return to office, which has intensified geopolitical tensions and uncertainty.

Since its expansion last year, when Iran, Ethiopia, the United Arab Emirates and Egypt joined as full members, followed by Indonesia in May, the bloc, which claims to be the voice of the Global South, has faced internal differences and competing priorities over such issues as security, trade and global governance.

Founded in 2009 by Brazil, Russia, India and China to promote multipolarity in the global economy, Bric became Brics following South Africa’s entry in 2010. By 2023, more than 40 countries had applied to join. - SOUTH CHINA MORNING POST