The Planalto hopes that the (PT) meeting will serve to stop the dialogue between allies of the presidential candidate () and the White House. The PT member meets with the president of this Thursday (7).
Planalto’s calculation is that the meeting between Lula and Trump takes place at a sensitive moment, when. The senator has two interlocutors in the USA who are trying to influence foreign policy regarding Brazil, the former deputy and the Bolsonarist businessman Paulo Figueiredo.
The expectation is that the meeting will consolidate Lula as the Americans’ preferred interlocutor. The meeting was scheduled after a phone call from Trump to the Brazilian president over the weekend, in which the American suggested a personal meeting this week.
The Eduardo-Figueiredo duo has dialogue with a wing of the White House and in the past influenced the US on tariff policy, saying that the Brazilian government and the (Supreme Federal Court) politically persecute figures from the Brazilian right such as the former president (PL).
At the time, Trump’s aides were warned that Lula was facing a bad moment in terms of evaluation and that US action could bury him. In practice, the opposite happened: the PT member used the clash against Trump as a platform to rise again in public opinion.
At this moment, Planalto assesses that Trump has a different perception of the Brazilian president, with little fear that the visit to the White House will become a trap similar to the one made against the president of Ukraine. In 2025, in public after a meeting with the US president.
Allies of Flávio Bolsonaro told Sheet having informed the White House about Lula’s speeches against Trump and warning about what they consider to be serious actions by criminal organizations in Brazil.
The group prefers to wait and observe, as it considers that Trump’s unpredictable nature makes it difficult to predict whether he will make the agenda with the PT member something positive or negative for the Brazilian leader.
Planalto assesses that this is a crucial moment for the meeting, as from June onwards Lula must dedicate himself more to the pre-campaign. At the start of the year, there were concerns that a visit would coincide with the war in Iran, which began in February. Now, the assessment is that the agenda has a chance of happening given the expectation of the announcement of a peace agreement or truce.
The PT administration also sees a political-electoral opportunity on the agenda. The idea is to show that Lula, despite being ideologically opposed to Trump, is able to sit down and talk as a head of state who wants to put good commercial relations and diplomacy ahead of differences.
The Lula government and the Trump administration have been negotiating continuously since the presidents’ conversation in October last year, held in Malaysia, but the new agenda had been postponed due to the need to resolve trade impasses.
Now, Lula also has new practical objectives with the trip. One of them, which includes collaboration in combating arms trafficking and money laundering. Cooperation with third countries in the region may also be under discussion.
The Brazilian government tries to prevent the US from announcing. In the Lula government’s view, the designation . The government also fears the political exploitation of the issue by Bolsonarists during the electoral campaign.
Another topic highlighted for the meeting is rare earths. The USA demonstrated interest in exploring critical Brazilian minerals, and Lula asked for speed with the project that regulates this activity on national soil. The text entered the Chamber’s agenda this Wednesday (6).
The Brazilian government also established as a priority issue the US government. Through it, the US government punishes foreign commercial practices considered unfair or restrictive to the country’s interests. Planalto wants to present documents that show the good commercial relationship between Brasília and Washington.
