According to reports by Hong Kong’s *South China Morning Post* and Brazil’s *O Estado de S. Paulo*, Kevin Murakami, the U.S. Consul General in São Paulo, recently stated at a port conference in Brazil that the new large-scale container terminal at the Port of Santos “should not fall into the hands of certain undesirable forces.”

“This facility should not fall into the hands of certain undesirable forces.” This remark took the business leaders in attendance by surprise.

The project in question is Terminal 10 at Tecon Santos, covering an area of 621,000 square meters. Once completed, it will significantly boost the port’s global ranking. Although the U.S. side cited concerns over security and strategic implications, it acknowledged that no U.S. companies participated in the bidding process.

In response to the allegations, the U.S. Consulate denied exerting direct pressure but did not deny attempting to influence the outcome of the bidding process.

This move has sparked a strong backlash in Brazil. One netizen bluntly stated:

“Brazil has a president; he is not the U.S. consul. We must not let him get his way.”

Many others emphasized:

“Stay out of it. Brazil is a sovereign nation; whoever wins the bid wins.”

“Brazil should do what’s in its own best interest, not what pleases the U.S.”