Indigenous tribes in Brazil are facing escalating violence during the presidency of Jair Bolsonaro, who has promised to reduce tribal rights and encouraged the commercial exploitation of their protected lands.

“DiCaprio is a cool guy, isn’t he? Giving money to set the Amazon on fire,” the president said to supporters in Brasilia.

In a speech to the UN, Bolsonaro said any foreign aid to help protect the rainforest must fully respect Brazilian sovereignty.

Brazilian President Jair Bolsonaro says he wants to discuss the Amazon fires that have drawn world attention at the next U.N. General Assembly in September.

Brazil's National Space Research Institute says fires have increased about 80% in Brazil this year when compared to the same period last year. A little over half those fires are in the Amazon.

Bolsonaro said he would "use Compactor pens, not Bic... because Bic is French."

Bolsonaro said he had asked U.S. President Donald Trump for “help” and that Trump had said “he couldn’t make a decision without hearing from Brazil.”

The Amazon wildfires may not be wiping out the "lungs of the planet," but they could be threatening important rainfall.

Macron and other European leaders argue the fires in the Amazon require a global response because of the ecosystem's critical role in draining heat-trapping carbon dioxide from the atmosphere.

About 60 per cent of the Amazon region is in Brazil. The vast Amazon also includes Bolivia, Colombia, Venezuela, Ecuador, Peru, Guyana, Suriname and French Guiana, an overseas region of France.