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When Brazil’s Luiz Inácio Lula da Silva and Donald Trump finally talked over their differences on Monday, the man at the center of their months-long feud was not even mentioned.
Trump’s social media post describing the conversation as “very good” did not include by name former Brazilian President Jair Bolsonaro, whose trial on attempted coup charges prompted the US leader to impose 50% tariffs on many Brazilian goods earlier this year.
And although Lula asked Trump to lift trade tariffs and U.S. sanctions on top Brazilian officials, neither Bolsonaro nor his September conviction came up in the 30-minute phone call, according to a person present for the conversation.
If the call itself suggested a thaw in Brazil-US relations, Bolsonaro’s sudden sidelining is an even clearer sign that momentum remains firmly behind Lula, the leftist leader who had already seen his approval ratings rise amid his dispute with Trump.
By contrast, the jubilant statements unnerved at least some Bolsonaro allies, according to a person close to the powerful conservative family who, like others, requested anonymity to discuss internal matters.
Brazilian officials are hesitant to declare victory prematurely. But Lula’s government saw Bolsonaro’s complete absence from the discussions as a sign that Trump might be willing to turn the page on its ally, two other officials said, a development that would shift the focus from unresolved political differences to economic matters on which there is room to cut a deal.
It won’t clear the biggest hurdle in trade talks between the nations, which Trump apparently imposed the tariffs after Brazil’s top court refused to drop a lawsuit against Bolsonaro.
That would give Lula a chance to fully exploit the allure of hawkish leaders like Mexico’s Claudia Sheinbaum, who has been used to getting ahead of Trump, and has long been a key weapon in the 79-year-old Brazilian’s political arsenal.
For decades, Lula has boasted a reputation as a charmer, able to win over everyone from George W. Bush to Emmanuel Macron despite sharp ideological differences or fierce policy divisions.
Trump is notorious for flattery, and while Lula is too prideful as a politician to accede to the demands of any foreign leader, he is hardly above a little arrogance if he deems it useful.
On Monday’s call, Lula reminded his counterpart that while Brazil runs a trade deficit with the U.S., part of his case is that it has the commercial relationship with the U.S. that Trump wants every country to have.
He also presented the conversation as an opportunity to emphasize the 200-year friendship between the Western Hemisphere’s largest democracies, striking similar notes to what Prime Minister Keir Starmer struck about UK-US relations during Trump’s visit to London last month.
It was a push to build on progress made by the pair of leaders during their seconds-long encounter at the UN General Assembly two weeks ago, in which Trump enjoyed “excellent chemistry” with Lula. They also took time to “reiterate the positive impact” that each had taken from it, according to a readout from the Brazilian government.
What Bloomberg Economics Says…
An easing of strained trade relations with the US could be a significant benefit for Brazil, which faces a potential 1% hit to GDP from Donald Trump’s current tariff measures. Further signs of rapprochement followed a call between the US president and his Brazilian counterpart Luiz Inacio Lula da Silva on Monday, suggesting Washington may be willing to waive at least some of the additional 40% levy imposed on the Latin American country, as Lula has requested.
-Jimena Zuniga, Rana Szedi and Adriana Dupita
Read their full report here.
It is too early to know whether Lula’s push will work. But high-level communication channels have been opened, with Secretary of State Marco Rubio set to lead ongoing talks with Brazilian Finance Minister Fernando Haddad, Vice President Geraldo Alcmin and other officials in the coming weeks.
Meanwhile, both Lula and Trump promised that they would meet in person soon. Trump has a busy schedule, with he expected to host like-minded Argentinian leader Javier Mili next week amid talks on his trade talks and financial aid for the country’s ailing economy.
But a meeting with Lula is possible during a summit of Southeast Asian nations in Malaysia later this month and the Brazilian has also signaled a willingness to travel to Washington for a meeting if needed.
For months, Bolsonaro’s son Eduardo has lobbied the Trump administration to come to his father’s defense, noting that US political pressure is the only way for the former president to avoid his legal woes and run against Lula again next year.
Some inside the Bolsonaro family were already uncomfortable with the sentiment emanating from the U.N. encounter, a person familiar with the situation said, and saw the phone call and resulting statements as another sign that Trump is ready to move forward.
Their hopes now rest on Rubio, whose aggressive approach to Latin America’s leftist leaders has inspired expectations of a more ideologically aligned stance toward Brazil, the person added. It’s a view shared by Eduardo Bolsonaro, who praised Rubio in a social media post on Monday afternoon.
But Lula’s administration believes Trump, not Rubio, will ultimately lead the decision-making process, a Brazilian official said.
And after several months when Eduardo appeared to be the only Brazilian with high-level access to Washington, Lula appears to have established a direct connection with Trump himself: They exchanged phone numbers during the call, and Lula told Trump to call him anytime, a Brazilian official said.
This article was generated from an automated news agency feed without any modifications to the text.
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