“Brazil’s elections are Brazil’s problem. Just like the American elections are its problem. It’s not my problem.”
The phrase, said by the president at a press conference at the Brazilian embassy in Geneva this Wednesday (17), summarizes the tone he gave to almost all the answers: Brazil decides its own affairs, negotiates on an equal footing and does not automatically align itself with any power.
“Don’t get involved in Brazil’s elections,” said Lula, after statements by Trump, who in the country was confused about the situation of the Bolsonaro clan.
“I just hope that it doesn’t violate the code of ethics among nations that want to be respected,” he added.
Asked about the brief meetings and little interaction with Trump, Lula said he considered the American’s attitude towards Brazil “uncomfortable” and that he acts like an emperor, but attributed the absence of a bilateral meeting to the still open phase of negotiations on the tariff imposed by Washington, not to a rupture.
“I didn’t ask Trump for a bilateral because we are negotiating,” said the president, citing ongoing conversations between Chancellor Mauro Vieira and the American Secretary of State, and between Minister Márcio Elias Rosa (Industry and Commerce) and the American counterpart.
Lula stated that he personally delivered to Trump, in writing, four documents during the summit: one on the fight against organized crime, highlighting the capacity of the Brazilian Federal Police; one on rare earths and critical minerals; one on bilateral trade; and a copy of the agreement that Brazil, Turkey and Iran negotiated in 2010 on the Iranian nuclear program — which, according to the president, would have avoided the need for military attacks on the country if it had been accepted at the time.
“I made a point of delivering it in writing, because now, when I talk to a person who talks more than they listen, I make a point of delivering it in writing so people don’t forget what I delivered,” he stated.
Regarding the document to combat organized crime, Lula said he used the meeting to publicly refute the American government’s decision to classify the PCC and Comando Vermelho as terrorist organizations, announced by Marco Rubio the week before the summit.
“I was surprised when I received news last week of the punishment, including classifying the criminal factions as terrorists,” he said. “I had told them, these criminal actions are terrorists for the Brazilian people. They are not terrorists as you think, they don’t want to fight and defeat the State, they don’t want to create another State, they want money. So it’s different.”
The president also said he had demanded more active cooperation from the Americans against arms trafficking and money laundering linked to Brazilian organized crime. “All the weapons that the Federal Police seize in Brazil come from Miami. And the State of Delaware launders money from Brazilian criminals”, he stated, without citing the source of this information.
Lula was asked about Trump’s statements to the press in Évian, in which the American classified Brazil as a politically “complicated” and “dangerous” country, and said he had heard that they arrested “Bolsonaro Jr” because he would be doing well in the polls.
The speech appears to refer to Eduardo Bolsonaro, sentenced this week by the STF to four years and two months in prison for coercion during the process — but who was not actually arrested, as he has lived in the United States since 2025. Flávio Bolsonaro, Eduardo’s brother, is a senator and pre-candidate for the Presidency, and was not convicted or arrested.
Lula did not correct Trump’s mistake directly, but attributed the comment to the American’s lack of knowledge about Brazilian politics. “I think he knows little about Brazil. He knows Brazil because of the relationship he has with the Bolsonaro family,” he said.
The president took the opportunity to defend the Brazilian electoral system, citing the rapid counting of electronic voting machines as an example for the United States to follow. “There is no country in the world that has an electronic voting system in which, two hours after the elections end, we already know the results in 27 states of the Federation”, he stated. “If there’s anyone who has to learn from the civilized elections in Brazil, it’s my friend Trump.”
Despite the critical tone, Lula avoided a harsher break and said he respected Trump’s right to maintain his political preferences. “For me, he can continue to like Bolsonaro, his father, his son, his grandson, there’s no problem.”
China, the United States and the place of Brazil
Before dealing specifically with Trump, Lula had dedicated part of the interview to explaining how Brazil positions itself in the trade dispute between the United States and China — a topic that, according to him, permeated the summit’s discussions on global economic imbalances.
The president said he did not want a “Cold War” between the two powers and argued that each country should occupy its own space without Brazil needing to take sides. “We defend that the United States is the United States, that China is China and that we are us,” he said. “The more negotiation we do, the better for everyone.”
Lula cited figures to justify Brazil’s commercial proximity to Beijing: a surplus of US$165 billion in the trade balance with China, against a deficit of US$10 billion with the United States, whose bilateral trade totaled US$80 billion last year.
For the president, the Chinese advantage in Latin America and Africa results from a vacuum left by the Europeans and Americans themselves, not from a deliberate strategy by Beijing. “China occupied a space that was empty due to the absence of Europeans and Americans,” he said. “He can’t complain that China is taking up the space. The space was empty.”
The president said he told Trump, at the end of his speech at the summit, that the broader trade discussion should take place at the G20, under the American presidency this year — not in bilateral forums. “Do you want to discuss the trade issue seriously in the world? Let’s discuss it at the G20”, he told the American.
