Former Brazilian Air Force Chief Carlos Baptista Junior to Publish Book on Coup

Carlos Baptista Junior, former commander of Brazil's Air Force under President Jair Bolsonaro, announced that his book “Eu disse NÃO: uma trincheira antigolpista” will be released in September by Autêntica Editora. The memoir recounts the internal crisis within the Brazilian Armed Forces from 2021 through the inauguration of President Luiz Inácio Lula in January 2023, describing the mounting pressures and meetings that preceded the attempted coup in 2022.

Baptista Junior says he questioned the then‑Defense Minister about maneuvers that isolated a general opposed to any rupture of constitutional order, and he witnessed intensified “analysis of conjuntura” meetings at the Ministry of Defense as the 2022 election approached. He also recounts the removal of General Laerte Santos from calls and the evasive answers of Minister Paulo Sérgio Nogueira, who was later sentenced by the Supreme Court. The book presents his personal account and anti‑coup stance during Brazil’s most turbulent recent military period.