Brazil’s President Luiz Inácio Lula da Silva addressed the nation’s television audience, characterizing U.S. President Donald Trump’s threats of imposing steep tariffs on Brazilian goods as “unacceptable extortion.”
On July 9, Trump announced plans to implement a 50% tariff on Brazilian exports to the United States unless Brasília dropped its prosecution of former Brazilian President Jair Bolsonaro, who is currently facing allegations of orchestrating a coup attempt.
In his televised remarks, Lula condemned “some Brazilian politicians” who support Trump’s threats against the largest economy in Latin America, labeling them as “traitors to the nation.”
He further cautioned that “Brazil has only one owner: the Brazilian people.”
In a message directed to his predecessor, Trump urged Brasília via his social media platform, Truth Social, to “stop attacking” Bolsonaro.