After Flávio-Trump meeting, Lula praises Brazil’s sovereignty – Valor International
Por Valor — São Paulo
One day after Senator Flávio Bolsonaro met with U.S. President Donald Trump in Washington D.C., President Lula praised Brazil’s sovereignty and natural wealth in a video posted on social media.
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“Take a look at the nature behind me, at the amount of water. Does any country in the world have something like this? It’s important that we learn to defend and appreciate Brazil, because this country was born to be the best in the world,” Lula said at dawn in Manaus, on the banks of the Rio Negro.
While Flávio Bolsonaro’s allies celebrated the meeting with Trump amid his presidential campaign, government supporters see the episode as an opportunity for Lula’s Workers’ Party (PT) to reinforce its sovereignty narrative and highlight the Bolsonaro family’s closeness to Trump, who imposed tariffs on Brazilian products.
As reported by Valor, PT leaders believe the image of Flávio Bolsonaro with Trump effectively turned the U.S. president into a campaign surrogate for the senator—something Lula’s campaign is expected to exploit. At a moment when Lula’s defense of Brazilian sovereignty during the tariff dispute helped boost his popularity, the photo of Flávio Bolsonaro alongside Trump strengthens the PT’s argument that the Bolsonaro family worked against Brazil’s interests by encouraging U.S. attacks on Brazilian trade and industry.
Even the aesthetics of the photograph became ammunition for PT supporters, who mocked the image of Flávio Bolsonaro standing beside Trump while the U.S. president remained seated at his desk in the Oval Office. Their assessment is that the image cannot be compared with the photographs of Lula and Trump during the Brazilian president’s official visit to Washington. In those pictures, Lula and Trump are standing and shaking hands in the traditional greeting between heads of state.
Sources in the Lula administration also dismissed any impact from the episode on diplomatic or trade relations between the two countries, which continue to advance discussions on tariff reductions and negotiations involving critical minerals such as rare earths.
Flávio-Trump meeting
Flávio Bolsonaro was received Tuesday afternoon (26) by the U.S. president. After the meeting, the Liberal Party (PL) presidential hopeful posted a photo alongside Trump in the Oval Office on social media and held a press conference.
Within Flávio Bolsonaro’s pre-campaign, the meeting had been presented as a way to shift attention toward a positive agenda following the fallout from revelations about the senator’s ties to former banker Daniel Vorcaro. After messages disclosed by news outlet Intercept Brasil, the senator acknowledged having negotiated with Banco Master owner Vorcaro over financing the film “Dark Horse,” about the life of former President Jair Bolsonaro.
Speaking to reporters, Flávio Bolsonaro said the meeting with Trump lasted about one hour and 40 minutes and took place at the direct invitation of the U.S. president. As of Wednesday morning, neither the White House nor Trump himself had commented publicly on the meeting. Earlier, allies had indicated that the meeting had been brief, involving only the delivery of documents and a pause to take the photo later posted on social media.
During the press conference, the senator denied that his pre-campaign was facing a crisis. A Datafolha poll released last week, after the disclosure of the messages involving Vorcaro, showed President Lula’s lead over the senator widening from three to nine percentage points.
“What crisis? An election campaign has ups and downs. I’m very confident that I’m the only alternative this country has to avoid four more years of a terrible government,” he said.
Earlier this month, Trump hosted President Lula in Washington for their first bilateral meeting in the United States. During the meeting, the two heads of state discussed issues including trade, tariffs, and rare earth minerals.
This article was translated from Valor Econômico using an artificial intelligence tool under the supervision of the Valor International editorial team to ensure accuracy, clarity, and adherence to our editorial standards. Read our Editorial Principles.
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