Strict customs controls, primarily from Brazil, caused a traffic collapse in Ciudad del Este, with kilometers-long queues and hours-long waits to cross the border, a situation worsened by outdated road infrastructure.
Foz do Iguaçu
Pytagua coverage mentioning Foz do Iguaçu.
Starting August 3, 2026, the Integration Bridge between Paraguay and Brazil will expand traffic to empty trucks and international urban buses, aiming to ease congestion on the Friendship Bridge and improve border logistics.
Brazilian authorities warn that Paraguayan vehicles with outstanding fines may be impounded at the Foz do Iguaçu border crossing during the winter holidays, as debts from foreign license plates total more than 42 million reais.
Brazilian authorities seized explosive material with a detonating cord on Friday night, believed to have been used in the June 16 mega bank robbery in Santa Rita, Paraguay, during a joint operation in the border area that led to the arrest of two suspects and their transfer to the Federal Police in Foz do Iguaçu.
The Federal Highway Police made the largest rifle seizure in its history by intercepting a truck on BR-277 in Santa Terezinha de Itaipu carrying 25 rifles, 16 pistols, over 5,000 rounds of ammunition, and 127 magazines. The 28-year-old driver was arrested and handed over to the Federal Police on charges of international arms trafficking.
A new bilateral protocol between Paraguay and Brazil could exclude around 400 small cross-border carriers by eliminating the N1 category and requiring costly international documentation, with a transition period running through November 1, 2026.
The Federal Revenue Service and the Federal Police dismantled a money laundering criminal organization linked to cigarette and agrochemical smuggling in Guaíra (PR), involving more than 375 million reais between 2019 and 2024, during Operation Sicarius, which executed 120 court orders across several Brazilian states.
On the morning of May 22, two Paraguayan buses carrying 106 Cerro Porteño fans returning from São Paulo lost their brakes and collided with light vehicles on BR-277 near the Friendship Bridge. The drivers were taken to Foz do Iguaçu Municipal Hospital with minor injuries; all passengers disembarked without serious injuries.
Criminal groups dominate the illegal trade of tirzepatide-based weight-loss drugs in the Triple Border region. Robberies, smuggling and counterfeiting generate million-dollar profits, while authorities struggle to contain the black market's advance.
Smuggling of tirzepatide-based weight-loss drugs from Paraguay into Brazil has increased sevenfold this year, with the Friendship Bridge as the main entry point. Brazil's Federal Police warn of the need to strengthen bilateral cooperation as criminal groups and small-scale smuggling advance.
The Itaipú binational hydroelectric plant, which supplies about 90% of Paraguay's electricity and 7% of Brazil's demand, celebrated 52 years since its founding on Saturday. The entity highlighted production records and its diplomatic role in overcoming border conflicts.
The Chamber of Commerce and Services of Ciudad del Este sent a letter to President Santiago Peña requesting the full opening of the Puente de la Integración as of July 1, 2026, amid the impasse in negotiations with Brazil, which maintains restrictions on light vehicle traffic.