Brazil’s Lula Defiant: ‘I Will Not Call Trump, Am Not Afraid’

President Trump has sent a message to President Luiz Inacio Lula da Silva saying the Brazilian leader could “call him anytime” to discuss the trade dispute centered on the country’s treatment of ex-leader Jair Bolsonaro.

Lula has defiantly responded Tuesday with the statement, “I will not call Trump because he does not want to talk.” He further asserted that nobody gives him lessons in negotiations.

Speaking during an event held in Brasilia, he made clear: “I don’t want people to think I am afraid of Donald Trump” and that “the US president had no right to announced the tariffs on Brazil the way he did” – especially as they make no sense.

Additional vehement complaints about the US position, at a moment a record-setting 50% tariff has taken effect for many Brazilian goods entering the US, are as follows via Bloomberg:

• US attacks on instant payment system Pix are unjustified, we cannot be penalized for developing a free and efficient system, said Lula
• The allegations about the Pix payment system, regulation of digital platforms and deforestation are unreasonable “Pix is a national heritage and an international reference for public and digital infrastructure. I would like President Trump to try out Pix in the US.”
• Brazil never left the negotiation table Political and electoral interests cannot contaminate commercial relations
• Critical minerals belong to Brazil and will not be explored by other nations

The Trump administration is demanding that charges against Bolsonaro, stemming from his rejection of the election results which brought Lula back to power, be dropped. 

However, the government has emphasized the independence of the judiciary. A week ago the US slapped sanctions on Brazilian Supreme Court Justice Alexandre de Moraes.

But regional analyst Bruna Santos of the Inter-American Dialogue in Washington DC, has explained that dropping the charges against Bolsonaro is simply not going to happen.

“The ask for Lula was undoable,” he was quoted in the Associated Press as saying. “In the long run, you are leaving a scar on the relationship between the two largest democracies in the hemisphere.”

‘I’m NOT going to call Trump to negotiate’ – Lula

Brazilian Prez. says Trump has no interest in talking

He also reveals what he’ll be saying to Putin, Xi, and Modi pic.twitter.com/GCUlnsvviA

— RT (@RT_com) August 5, 2025

As of Monday Bolsonaro has been ordered under house arrest, with the federal top court citing violations related to stoking resentment via social media and public messaging. For now at least, it looks like the government is backing down, despite the damage to trade relations and future economic pain.