The USA and Brazil are the world's third and seventh most populous countries, respectively. But the relations are frozen, since Trump introduced record-high trade tariffs of 50 percent – a political and economic revenge for Lula's predecessor Jair Bolsonaro being put on trial, and now convicted, for a coup attempt.
When asked if he has tried to contact Trump, President Lula answers in an interview with BBC:
I have never tried to pick up the phone because he has never wanted to have a conversation.
Via newspapers
Trump has, however, said that Lula can "call at any time". But the Brazilian leader is still convinced that the US government is refusing contact. As an example, Lula mentions that he received the news about the tariffs, which are higher than those against almost all other countries, via Brazilian newspapers.
He does not communicate in a civilized manner. He just posted them on his portal, on social media.
Ties to Putin
Lula is clear that he does not have much appreciation for the US president. According to BBC, he says that if the storming of the Capitol in Washington in 2021 had taken place in Brazil, Trump would have been put on trial – a jab implying that Brazil's justice system is more reliable than the US's.
When asked by BBC, the Brazilian leader defends his continued good relationship with the authoritarian presidents of China and Russia. Lula says that he and Russian Vladimir Putin formed strong bonds when they were heads of state "in previous years" – implying that at that time, the whole world had a different view of Russia.
