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Tariffs call in focus
Brazilian President Luiz Inacio Lula da Silva urged US counterpart Donald Trump in a phone call on Friday to resolve their trade dispute, saying US tariffs were imposed on "baseless" grounds.
“urged US counterpart Donald Trump in a phone call Friday to resolve their countries' trade dispute”
The France 24 report says Washington imposed two new sets of tariffs on Brazil in July, a move that has become a key campaign issue ahead of Brazil's presidential election in October.
Lula told Trump that the tariffs "negatively affect both Brazil and the United States," according to a statement from his office.
France 24 also says the conversation lasted an hour and 20 minutes and "took place in a friendly and cordial tone," while Lula sought a fourth and final term and framed the issue around national sovereignty.
Negotiation and crime agenda
In a separate account, BioBioChile says Lula and Trump agreed to continue negotiating the "37,5%" tariffs imposed on Brazil and that Lula rejected the reasons given by the US Office of the Trade Representative.
BioBioChile reports that Lula told Trump that "seguir en la mesa de negociación" was the "mejor opción" for the United States to keep Brazil as one of its main trade partners.
The France 24 account adds that during the call Lula said Trump asked Commerce Secretary Howard Lutnick to contact Lula's Brazilian counterpart Marcio Elias Rosa and that "they already scheduled a meeting."
BioBioChile also says the leaders discussed combating organized crime and the need for a negotiated solution for the conflict between Russia and Ukraine, with Lula complaining about the "inoperancia" of the UN Security Council.
Election stakes and next steps
France 24 says diplomatic tensions flared as the election approaches, noting that Trump has backed several victorious right-wing candidates in recent Latin American elections and is an ally of Brazil's jailed far-right former president Jair Bolsonaro.
“Trump has backed several victorious right-wing candidates in recent Latin American elections”
It also reports that Trump last year dropped punitive tariffs imposed over the trial against Jair Bolsonaro after diplomatic efforts by Lula's government, but that Lula then suffered a blow after a May visit to the White House by Flavio Bolsonaro.
BioBioChile says the call came with less than two months before the elections in which Lula seeks re-election and that the Brazilian government accused the White House of wanting to influence the vote in favor of Flávio Bolsonaro.
BioBioChile further reports that Trump proposed that teams meet "lo más pronto posible" and declared he would appoint "funcionarios de alto nivel" to follow up on the tariff issue.