The federal government has avoided making a direct correlation between the participation of President Luiz Inácio Lula da Silva (PT) in the G7 summit in France and the tariffs imposed by the United States on Brazil. According to CNN political analyst Isabel Mega, Live CNNBrazil also decided not to request a formal bilateral meeting with the North American government.
The official stance is that the Brazilian presence at the meeting goes far beyond the tariff issuealthough the context of trade negotiations with Washington serves as a backdrop for the trip.
If there is any interaction between Lula and American President Donald Trump during the meeting, it will take place informally, without the nature of a structured meeting. “We didn’t count on this until President Lula arrived in France”, said Isabel Mega.
Peer-to-peer trading
Brazil maintains, however, the expectation that it will still be possible to advance in negotiations around , within the scope of the so-called Section 301 — a commercial investigation led by the United States.
The , point by point, the arguments raised in the investigation, including topics such as Pix, deforestation and the bilateral economic relationship. “Brazil has been wasting its time since last year, more than a year, to explain to the Americans that several of those points are quite contestable”, highlighted the analyst.
The expectation is that any data will be given broadly and not directly aimed at Trump. Criticism of protectionist practices and defense of multilateralism must set the tone for Brazilian participation.
“The tariff is a beautiful example of a protectionist practice”, said Isabel Mega, adding that this type of message usually appears in the president’s speeches when he speaks abroad.
Delay in confirmation drew attention
A Brazil’s delay in formalizing participation in the summit also generated attention. The invitation from French President Emmanuel Macron arrived in February, but .
Lula himself gave a hint about the behind-the-scenes when he publicly declared that he initially did not intend to go to , but that he had changed his mind — a speech that reinforced the association of the trip with the context of fares. “I wasn’t even going to go to the G7, but now I’m going,” the president reportedly said, according to the analyst’s report.
The Palácio do Planalto, however, reinforces that Brazilian participation must be read with a more comprehensive look. Negotiation over tariffs, according to the government, will continue to be handled through a specific working groupand not within the scope of the summit. This will be the tenth time that Lula participates in the G7 as a special guest.
