The trip is the third of the year to Asian countries and is part of a strategy designed at Palácio do Planalto to search for alternative economic partners and expand markets
O landed this Wednesday (22) in Jakarta, capital of for a tour of Asian countries, marked by his meeting with the president of the United States, . The trip is the third of the year to Asian countries and is part of a strategy designed at Palácio do Planalto to search for alternative economic partners and expand markets, in the face of the tariff war triggered by Trump and the American dispute with .
Southeast Asia is one of the most economically dynamic regions in the world and a place of direct clash of influences between Beijing and Washington. Lula will reciprocate in Jakarta the visit made by the president of Indonesia, Prabowo Subianto, who was in Brazil twice: at the G-20, in November 2024, and in Rio and Brasília, in July 2025. The commitments begin on Thursday, 23. On Friday, 24, Lula will visit the headquarters of ASEAN, an economic bloc in Southeast Asia, which already has a relevance for Brazilians similar to that of Mercosur, despite the geographical distance. In 2024, Brazil’s trade flow with ASEAN (Association of Southeast Asian Nations) was US$37 billion, slightly less than its South American neighbors.
The president will also promote a business event, and there are Indonesian interests in agricultural and defense products, among others. Itamaraty expects around 100 Brazilian businesspeople – and a similar number of Indonesians – to participate in the forum. The Lula government seeks greater equidistance between the two economic powers and the Sino-American economic dispute, although the country has strengthened ties with Beijing and expanded trade, something it does not intend to give up in rebuilding relations with Trump.
This year, Lula also visited China itself, in May, and Japan and Vietnam, in March. The Lula government seeks to strengthen political ties and strategic partnership with Indonesia, the largest Muslim-majority country in the world and a market of 285 million inhabitants. The country hosted the Bandung Conference in 1955, one of the historic milestones of the non-alignment movement and the post-colonial era.
On Friday afternoon, Lula will travel to Kuala Lumpur, Malaysia, where he will participate in the 47th ASEAN Leaders’ Meeting and hold bilateral meetings with the president of theDonald Trump, and Indian Prime Minister Narendra Modi. The two conversations are scheduled for Sunday, 26th, in the afternoon. In February 2026, Lula plans to return to for a state visit and conference on artificial intelligence.
*With information from Estadão Conteúdo
