Senator and presidential candidate Flávio Bolsonaro (PL-RJ) criticized President Luiz Inácio Lula da Silva’s preference for prioritizing China as an economic partner while “closing the doors” to the United States and its president, Donald Trump.
In an interview with the American newspaper Financial TimesFlávio stated that the American president is “too hostile” to the United States while favoring his Chinese partner, Xi Jinping. “President Lula is wrong to close the doors to the United States and simply open Brazil as if it were a Chinese colony,” he told the outlet.
The statement comes at a time of strain between Lula and Trump’s relationship amid the impact of the war in Iran on the Brazilian economy. This week, the Brazilian government stated that the PT member’s expected trip to the United States is not ruled out, but after having been expected for March.
Since January, when Lula and Trump spoke on the phone and agreed on March as the scheduled date for the trip, the PT member has expressed several criticisms of the American leader’s actions, in addition to smaller clashes, such as the recent ones.
During the interview with the vehicle, Flávio also commented on this year’s electoral dispute and the political strategy articulated so that the Bolsonaro family has a “quick return” to power in Brazil.
According to the vehicle, the senator seeks to draw a personal contrast with Lula, positioning himself as the “new” in relation to the old ideas of a president who is already running for his fourth term.
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“Brazil urgently needs change, a younger, more modern and more energetic government,” he told the FT. “The problem is not Lula’s age, it’s that his ideas are outdated.”
Strategy
In an attempt to attract centrist voters, Flávio will also bet on maintaining a more moderate image in relation to other family members, while maintaining part of the tone that distinguished his father as a political figure in Brazil.
The publication describes Flávio’s strategy as “a mix of far-right positions on social issues and public security”, with center-right views on the economy and the “fervent conviction” that Bolsonaro Sr. was unfairly convicted.
To the FTFlávio also commented on his visit to El Salvador, last year, in which he was able to observe the incarceration policy proposed by the right-wing president, Nayib Bukele. The idea of both right-wing leaders converges on reducing the age of criminal responsibility as a way of directly combating crime, facilitating the arrest of those who commit crimes considered serious.
“Brazilian workers no longer want to worry about someone pointing a gun at their head at a traffic light,” he told the newspaper.
Despite his dominance on the public security agenda, the publication considers that Flávio’s candidacy will be put to the test at the moment when Lula’s team begins to attack the senator for his record, including rescuing the cold case of cracks in the office and possible connections with the militia.
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