Minister says government will meet its Rio 2016 Olympics investments

Justice Minister Eugênio Aragão said that despite Brazil's economic crisis, the government will meet its investments for the Rio 2016 Olympics. The federal government is investing $96 million in Rio 2016. “This is our top priority—this event will put Brazil in the spotlight after all,” he said.

Aragão admitted that terrorism has become a growing threat worldwide both in terms of severity and frequency, but assured that Brazil is ready to host the Games safely and foreign police cooperation will help with security. He explained that counter-terrorism activities are an ordinary part of security schemes for large-scale events.

The minister ruled out any possibility of the federal government providing additional resources to help the Rio de Janeiro state government pay for police security at the Games. Amid the financial crisis, the state government has been unable to pay for extra police service during off-duty times.

“All we can meet is the costs of the federal government. This is a collaboration, so we expect each partner to meet their own costs. Due to our own accounting restrictions, we can not take on these [state] costs,” Aragão explained at a meeting on Olympics security on Monday (Mar. 28).

Translated by Mayra Borges