Lula da Silva Travels to the United States to Meet Donald Trump at the White House

Brazilian President Luiz Inácio Lula da Silva will travel to the United States to meet with U.S. President Donald Trump, with multiple outlets placing the meeting on Thursday at the White House after Lula departs on Wednesday.

“Brazilian President Luiz Inacio Lula da Silva is expected to travel to the United States to meet with his counterpart, Donald Trump, later this week, according to media reports”

Al Jazeera

Reuters-cited sources in the Brazilian government told the Egyptian Gazette that Lula would travel on Wednesday and meet with Trump on Thursday, while the Straits Times similarly said Lula would travel on Wednesday and meet on Thursday, citing “two sources in the Brazilian government.”

Al Jazeera

Valor International reported that the meeting is scheduled for Thursday at the White House and described it as the third in-person meeting between the two presidents during Trump’s second term.

Al Jazeera also said the Reuters news agency reported later in the day, citing two anonymous Brazilian officials, that Lula would travel to the US in the coming days, with one source saying he was traveling on Wednesday for a meeting with Trump the following day.

Across the coverage, the White House did not immediately confirm the trip, with the Egyptian Gazette noting that “The White House did not immediately respond to a request for comment.”

The Straits Times likewise said “The White House did not immediately respond to a request for comment,” and Devdiscourse added that “The White House has yet to issue a comment on the meeting.”

In the background of the scheduling, Lula and Trump had agreed on a visit during a phone call earlier in the year, with initial expectations that the meeting would take place in March but “ultimately did not take place.”

The planned Washington meeting is framed by Brazilian officials and international reporting as an effort to “reactivar la agenda bilateral” and to address issues that had remained “trabados entre ambos países,” with C5N saying the encounter’s “eje” would be reactivating the bilateral agenda and advancing topics that were stuck.

C5N reported that “De acuerdo con fuentes del gobierno brasileño, la reunión tendrá carácter de trabajo” and would seek to “encauzar negociaciones” in “áreas sensibles del vínculo comercial y político.”

C5N

Among the points Brazil intends to discuss, C5N said “aparece la eliminación de aranceles a sus exportaciones” and “el levantamiento de restricciones que afectan a funcionarios del país sudamericano.”

France 24 added that during a “llamada de 50 minutos,” Lula urged Trump’s “Junta de Paz” to be limited to Gaza and to include Palestinians, and both leaders agreed on a “pronta reunión en Washington.”

The same France 24 report said Lula and Trump agreed on “la realización de una visita del presidente Lula a Washington después del viaje del brasileño a India y Corea del Sur en febrero, en fecha a ser fijada en breve,” linking the timing to Lula’s travel schedule.

Multiple outlets also described why the meeting was postponed from March, with C5N saying the meeting “había sido inicialmente previsto para marzo” but was postponed “en medio de la escalada del conflicto en Medio Oriente.”

Valor International similarly said the meeting “will be postponed since the beginning of the year due to the conflict with Iran,” and Devdiscourse described that the meeting “initially planned for March” was postponed but “will occur on Thursday after final agreements during a phone call earlier this year.”

In parallel, Al Jazeera described the relationship’s improvement after an earlier period of hostility that included U.S. tariffs on Brazilian goods and pressure on Brazilian authorities to drop a legal case against Jair Bolsonaro over a coup plot.

The convergence of these details places the Washington meeting as both a diplomatic reset and a negotiation push on trade and political constraints.

The diplomatic tone heading into Washington is shaped by direct statements attributed to Lula and by the specific framework he pressed Trump to adopt.

“Lula Set for Diplomatic Talks with Trump in US Visit Brazilian President Luiz Inacio Lula da Silva is scheduled to visit the United States this week to meet with former President Donald Trump”

Devdiscourse

France 24 reported that Lula “conversó telefónicamente este lunes con su homólogo Donald Trump” and “le instó a que la 'Junta de Paz' auspiciada por el mandatario estadounidense se limite a Gaza e incluya a los palestinos.”

In the same account, France 24 said Lula “también recalcó la importancia de la estabilidad regional” and that both leaders agreed on a “pronta reunión en Washington.”

France 24 further quoted a Brasília communiqué in which Lula urged that the Junta “se limite a la cuestión de Gaza y prevea un asiento para Palestina.”

C5N added that Lula had adopted a “postura crítica” toward “las acciones militares impulsadas por Estados Unidos contra Irán,” which “tensó el vínculo,” while also noting a “gesto de distensión” after Lula expressed solidarity with Trump following “el ataque que sufrió durante una cena de corresponsales en Washington.”

In EL PAÍS’s exclusive interview, Lula used a blunt formulation about Trump’s behavior, saying: “Trump has no right to wake up in the morning and threaten a country.”

EL PAÍS also included Lula’s reflection on how he told Trump to be patient, quoting him: “Two countries governed by two men of 80 years should converse with a lot of maturity.”

The same interview captured Lula’s view of sovereignty and the UN Security Council, with Lula saying: “When you are head of state you must respect the sovereignty of other countries.”

It also included Lula’s critique of the Security Council’s role in war: “It bothers me greatly that the UN Security Council, created to maintain peace, makes war.”

Together, these accounts show Lula approaching the Washington meeting with a mix of demands on Gaza-related diplomacy, a call for maturity in bilateral engagement, and a recurring emphasis on sovereignty and multilateral institutions.

Beyond the diplomatic agenda, the lead-up to the meeting is described as occurring under political constraints in Brazil, with Valor International emphasizing Lula’s “low popularity and an unfavorable relationship with Congress.”

Valor International said that “This follows the Senate’s rejection of the nomination of Attorney General Jorge Messias to Brazil’s top court,” and it described how “behind the scenes, the president’s aides will work to turn the agenda into a positive event to demonstrate that Lula has international prestige.”

Egyptian Gazette

C5N similarly described an adverse domestic context, saying that “En los últimos días, el Congreso brasileño rechazó la nominación de Jorge Messias para la Corte Suprema” and “además, dejó sin efecto un veto presidencial sobre un proyecto de ley.”

C5N also linked the meeting’s postponement to international priorities, noting that the encounter with Trump had been “postergó en medio de la escalada del conflicto en Medio Oriente,” and it described how Lula’s stance toward U.S. actions against Iran “tensó el vínculo.”

Valor International added that the meeting will be the third in-person meeting between the two presidents during Trump’s second term, and it specified that the earlier in-person encounter was “lasting approximately one minute” behind the scenes at the UN General Assembly in September, “right after Lula’s speech and immediately before Trump’s address.”

Valor International also said that Lula’s first official visit to Washington is expected to follow a travel pattern in which “He is expected to travel on Wednesday and return to Brazil on Friday.”

Al Jazeera described the relationship’s improvement after hostility that included U.S. tariffs and pressure on Brazilian authorities to drop a legal case against Jair Bolsonaro, and it said the leaders spoke by phone in January when Lula said he would travel to the US in the future.

Devdiscourse echoed that the groundwork was laid “through a phone call” earlier this year in which both leaders expressed interest in strengthening relations.

Taken together, the reporting depicts the Washington meeting as both a foreign-policy engagement and a domestic political test for Lula, amid congressional setbacks and a need to present international momentum.

While the core facts about timing and the meeting’s purpose largely align, the outlets diverge in emphasis and framing, particularly around what the relationship with Trump has meant and what the meeting is expected to accomplish.

“Brazil's president speaks in an exclusive interview with EL PAÍS, in Brasília, about global disorder, elections with another Bolsonaro, his career, and his visit to Spain to meet with Sánchez and other international leaders”

EL PAÍS

C5N frames the encounter as a work meeting to “reactivar la agenda bilateral,” highlighting trade and political issues such as “la eliminación de aranceles a sus exportaciones” and “el levantamiento de restricciones que afectan a funcionarios del país sudamericano,” and it ties the broader context to domestic congressional turbulence and international escalation in the Middle East.

EL PAÍS

France 24, by contrast, foregrounds the content of Lula’s phone call with Trump, centering the “Junta de Paz” for Gaza and Lula’s insistence that it “se limite a la cuestión de Gaza y prevea un asiento para Palestina,” while also discussing Venezuela and a call to deepen cooperation against “crimen organizado en Brasil.”

Al Jazeera focuses on the reporting chain and the confirmation gap, stating that “The White House has yet to confirm reports of the trip,” and it situates the relationship’s improvement in the aftermath of “the US slapped tariffs on Brazilian goods” and “pressured Brazilian authorities to drop a legal case against former right-wing President Jair Bolsonaro.”

Valor International emphasizes the political calculus inside Brazil, describing “behind the scenes” efforts by aides to make the agenda a “positive event,” and it characterizes the meeting as occurring amid “Lula’s low popularity.”

The Straits Times and the Egyptian Gazette both rely on Reuters-sourced timing, with the Straits Times stating “Lula will travel on Wednesday and meet with Trump on Thursday,” and the Egyptian Gazette similarly reporting the same schedule based on “two sources in the Brazilian government.”

Devdiscourse adds a diplomatic tone by describing the meeting as “highly anticipated” and saying it will occur “after final agreements during a phone call earlier this year,” while again noting the White House had not commented.

Even EL PAÍS, while not focused on the schedule alone, provides a different lens through Lula’s direct language about Trump, including “Trump has no right to wake up in the morning and threaten a country,” and it places the interview in Brasília with Lula preparing for travel to Barcelona and participation in a forum.

Across these differences, the shared anchor remains the Thursday meeting in Washington after Lula’s Wednesday travel, but each outlet selects different details—trade, Gaza diplomacy, Venezuela, congressional constraints, or Lula’s rhetoric—to define what the moment means.