'We will tax American digital companies,' says Lula

6:08

SPECIAL ENVOY TO GOIÂNIA - The President of the Republic, Luiz Inácio Lula da Silva , stated this Thursday, 17, that Brazil will not give in to pressure from the White House to ease regulation and taxation of social media platforms in the country. “We will charge taxes on American digital companies,” he stated.

He didn't specify how this would happen. The statement came amid criticism from the Workers' Party member of the digital environment and the 50% tariff announced by US President Donald Trump on Brazilian products.

"He (Donald Trump) said, 'I don't want American companies, platform companies, to be taxed in Brazil.' I'll tell you one thing: the world needs to know that this country is only sovereign because its people are sovereign and proud of it. I wanted to tell you that we will judge and tax American digital companies," the president said. The statement was made during the 60th Congress of the National Union of Students (UNE) in Goiânia.

Regarding the regulation, which is advancing in the Supreme Federal Court, Lula stated:"We do not accept that, in the name of freedom of expression, they tell lies, perpetrate violence against children, women, Black people, and LGBTQIA+ people. We will not allow it, because the Brazilian people own Brazil. We will not allow our children to be victims of things beyond our control," he added.

Some countries around the world, when approving social media regulations, imposed taxes on digital services. Canada, for example, is one of them. The United States' neighbor, however, repealed this tax precisely in the midst of negotiations with the US.

In a document signed by the Office of the U.S. Trade Representative (USTR), the U.S. government criticizes Brazil's digital and regulatory environment. The agency claims that Brazilian actions and policies harm American technology companies, restrict freedom of expression, and impose barriers to innovation.

According to the text, Supreme Court decisions and"secret" court orders directly affect US platforms."Brazilian courts issued secret orders instructing American social media companies to censor thousands of posts and disable the accounts of dozens of political critics, including US citizens, for legal speech on American soil." The US government believes this stance could "significantly increase the risk of economic harm" to companies and "restrict freedom of expression, including political expression."

Negotiations

During the event, Lula said he was born"learning how to negotiate" and that Trump "didn't negotiate 10%" of what he's negotiated in his life."I was born learning how to negotiate. I'm sure the American president (Trump) hasn't negotiated 10% of what I've negotiated in my life, ever. If there's one thing I know in life, it's how to negotiate," he said.

Lula said that "a foreigner won't give orders to this president of the Republic." The president received applause at several points during the event, especially when referring to Trump.

The Workers' Party member also used a metaphor using the game of truco. He said that"when someone truca, we have to choose: I run or I shout 'six' in his ear. I'm playing. Brazil likes negotiation."

Lula criticized Trump for the 50% tariff on products the US imports from Brazil. The Brazilian president said that Brazil"does not accept the idea of President Trump sending a letter on social media saying that if he doesn't release Bolsonaro, starting August 1st he will tax us 50%.

"We will respond as a democrat responds. First, we will not accept anyone, from any country in the world, interfering in our internal affairs. This is the first time we've had three four-star generals arrested. And they're not arrested for nothing; they're arrested because they tried to stage a coup. They wanted to kill Lula, Alexandre de Moraes, and Alckmin. They didn't have the courage to do it," he declared.

Lula also criticized former President Jair Bolsonaro, saying that Bolsonaro and his family"must be treated as traitors to the 20th and 21st centuries of this country's history." He again blamed the former president and his son Eduardo for the taxation imposed by Trump on Brazil."They weren't concerned about the harm this taxation will cause to Brazil, to industry, and to agribusiness," he declared.

The president stated that Bolsonaro"will not be tried because Lula wants it," but because "they (the former president's allies) betrayed themselves." Lula repeated that if Trump tried to do in Brazil what happened at the Capitol in the United States in January 2023, he would be tried and imprisoned.

Lula said he delegated negotiations with the United States regarding the tariffs to Vice President Geraldo Alckmin and Foreign Minister Mauro Vieira. He added that the talks have been ongoing for more than two months. He cited a letter sent by the Brazilian government on May 16th about"things we thought could be agreed upon," but which received no response.

"We're very calm. My vice president and the foreign minister have been negotiating for over two months, ever since that first tax. We have a negotiating team. On May 16, we sent a letter to the US team outlining the things we thought could be agreed upon. We haven't received any response. The response was the article published in his newspaper website, because he didn't even send a letter summoning us. Trump's letter doesn't mention negotiations," he said.

The Brazilian government has been seeking a path to negotiation with the United States. The negotiations are being led by Alckmin, who is also the Minister of Development, Industry, Commerce, and Services (MDIC).