Brazilian President Luiz Inácio Lula da Silva on Tuesday accused the head of U.S. diplomacy—Marco Rubio—of being a “mortal enemy” of several Latin American countries, after Washington threatened to impose new tariffs on Brazilian products.
The up-and-down relationship between the United States and Brazil has become strained once again, less than a month after a three-hour meeting between Lula and U.S. President Donald Trump—a meeting hailed by both leaders as positive.
The Office of the U.S. Trade Representative accused Brazil of unfair trade practices in areas such as social media, intellectual property, and deforestation, and threatened to impose a blanket tariff of 25 percent.
Lula stated that the announcement came “while we were still in negotiations”; he noted that he and Trump had agreed to a 30-day period to resolve their trade differences.
The leftist leader is seeking a fourth term in the elections scheduled for October. His main rival is Senator Flávio Bolsonaro, the son of far-right former President Jair Bolsonaro—an ally of Trump.
Last week, Flávio Bolsonaro met with Trump and Rubio in Washington.
“That Marco Rubio… who is the mortal enemy of several Latin American countries and who dislikes Brazil… was not present at the meeting I had with Trump,” Lula said, hinting at the possibility that the head of the State Department played a role in the decision.
Lula also branded the senator a “traitor” for having asked—as he claimed—a foreign country to “meddle in Brazilian affairs.”
This marks the second setback for Lula following his meeting with Trump. The first occurred last week, when the United States designated Brazil’s two largest criminal gangs—the *Primeiro Comando da Capital* (First Capital Command) and the *Comando Vermelho* (Red Command)—as terrorist groups, despite Brasília’s persistent objections. Last year, Trump imposed harsh tariffs on Brazil in response to what he viewed as a “witch hunt” against Jair Bolsonaro, who was sentenced to 27 years in prison for an attempted coup d’état.
The coercive measures were largely lifted following an initial meeting between Lula and Trump.
Flávio Bolsonaro stated that he had expressly asked Trump and Rubio not to levy tariffs on Brazilian companies, “but they do not trust Lula.”
On Tuesday, Trump showed photos of his meeting with Bolsonaro, whom he called an “intelligent young man who loves his country, Brazil, very much.”
