Brazilian President Luiz Inácio Lula da Silva has told US President Donald Trump that he has no right to impose his will on other countries, insisting that nations must be allowed to protect their sovereignty and pursue their own interests.
Lula made the remarks in an exclusive interview with CNN’s Christiane Amanpour ahead of the United Nations General Assembly in New York.
“President Trump was elected to be the US president. He has the right to govern the US, but he doesn’t have the right to govern other countries,” Lula said.
“He doesn’t have the right to impose his will. He has to have the willingness to negotiate.”
Lula said Brazil did not seek confrontation with Washington but wanted relations based on mutual respect and negotiation.
His comments come amid tensions between Brazil and the Trump administration over trade and US involvement in the region.
The United States imposed a 25 percent tariff on certain Brazilian imports in July following a year-long investigation by the US Trade Representative. Washington cited concerns including digital trade, electronic payments, intellectual property, ethanol access, anti-corruption enforcement, and illegal deforestation.
Lula disputed the US justification for the tariffs and said Brazil was expanding trade with other countries. He said Brazilian exports to the US had fallen by nine per cent, while imports from the US declined by 8.5 per cent.
However, Lula said Brazil was still negotiating with Washington and would consider reciprocal measures only if the talks failed.
“I don’t want to go to a tariff war with the US and neither with any other country,” he said.
Lula warns against election interference
Lula also raised concerns about possible US interference in Brazil’s upcoming elections, although he acknowledged that there was no concrete evidence.
He said there were “some clues” involving artificial intelligence and expressed concern about US Secretary of State Marco Rubio’s relationship with the Bolsonaro family.
“But for the meanwhile, we just have suspicion. There’s nothing concrete,” Lula said.
In his UN General Assembly address, Lula again warned against foreign interference in Brazil’s elections and called for respect for the country’s democratic process.
Lula criticizes US role in Venezuela
Lula also criticized Washington’s role in Venezuela, saying US actions had created the impression that the country was being governed by the United States.
The comments followed the US operation that removed former Venezuelan President Nicolás Maduro in January. Venezuela’s interim President Delcy Rodríguez was in New York for the UN General Assembly and met Trump on Tuesday.
“The US conveys the idea that they’re governing Venezuela,” Lula said, adding that agreements between Washington and Caracas made it appear that Venezuelan sovereignty had been undermined.
Lula said Venezuelans should be allowed to determine their political future through elections.
His remarks come as Trump has defended a more active US role in the Western Hemisphere. In his September 22 UN address, Trump called for greater US military power in the region and cited the operation that led to Maduro’s capture.
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