Lula and Trump: American says he can move quickly on revising tariff hikes and talks about making agreements

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SPECIAL ENVOY TO KUALA LUMPUR - The meeting between the presidents of Brazil, Luiz Inácio Lula da Silva, and the United States, Donald Trump , included moments of conversation about the PT member's political life and the legal proceedings to which Lula responded.

The reports reveal interest in Lula's history and some passages that left members of the Brazilian government with a feeling of some “complicity.”

According to Foreign Minister Mauro Vieira, the conversation was"relaxed" and "even cheerful." Trump expressed interest in Lula's career and, in general, appeared to have studied his career at length.

"Trump stated that he admires the profile of President Lula's political career, having already served twice as president of the Republic, having been persecuted in Brazil, recovered, proven his innocence, returned to the bench, and victoriously won a third term," Vieira reported.

Trump in Brazil, Lula in the US?

According to two other reports, both from Planalto officials, Trump used the term"persecuted" to refer to the criminal proceedings against Lula. The two also agreed to visit Brazil and the United States, on a date yet to be scheduled.

During the public portion of the meeting, Lula wanted to end the press's participation in the conversation, which lasted nine minutes. The Workers' Party member was visibly uncomfortable with the session. He felt the interaction had already gone on too long and was taking up time he wanted to spend negotiating. Trump nodded and mockingly said the questions were boring.

The Presidency of the Republic was against the presence of journalists, but since the US demanded it, it argued that there should be reciprocity and the participation of Brazilians. There was a commotion when accessing the room because the American Secret Service, which controlled the entrance, wanted to let the accredited journalists into the White House first.

The Workers' Party member and the American sat in blue patterned armchairs, a meter apart, separated by a table with a vase of flowers and two glasses of sparkling water. They posed for a photo smiling, a political asset of the Planalto Palace. The White House also released a photo of the handshake. For the Lula administration, the outcome was positive and some progress was made.

Although they did not immediately reverse or suspend the tariffs , Trump gave orders for his secretaries to meet this Sunday night in Kuala Lumpur with Lula's team, giving a sense of urgency to the matter, as the Brazilian government wanted.

Red folder and aid in Venezuela

The president handed him a red folder with the coat of arms of the Presidency of the Republic and elements of the political and commercial crisis, with Brazil's arguments on economic and political issues.

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The document also cites Lula's willingness to collaborate as an intermediary in the crisis surrounding Nicolás Maduro's dictatorship in Venezuela. The Americans responded positively, as Secretary of State Marco Rubio had previously indicated.

Lula recalled that he had acted in a similar crisis situation during the government of Hugo Chávez, and cited the fact that the region was a zone of peace, without armed conflicts.

According to a witness to the conversation, the Americans talked about the military operation and Trump claimed that Maduro was releasing prisoners to send criminals to the US.

Conviction of Jair Bolsonaro

In front of the cameras, the Republican was questioned by the press about former President Jair Bolsonaro and responded only that he “always liked him” and that he was saddened by the conviction for coup d'état, because he “went through a lot”.