Brazilian President Luiz Inácio Lula da Silva says the U.S. must respect his country — and he is ready to impose retaliatory tariffs if President Donald Trump proceeds with the threat to impose a 50% tax on Brazilian imports starting August 1st.
Trump published the warning in a letter on social media, citing what he called a “witch hunt” against former Brazilian President Jair Bolsonaro, who is currently on trial. Trump demanded that the case be dropped, calling Bolsonaro “a Highly Respected Leader throughout the World”.
Lula said in an interview posted on his official media account that he initially thought Trump’s letter was fake.
“The Brazilian people must be respected. Brazilian justice must be respected,” said Lula. “We are a great sovereign country with a historical tradition of diplomacy with all nations. Brazil will take the necessary measures to protect its people and its companies.”
The U.S. currently has a trade surplus with Brazil — unlike many of the more than 20 countries that also received tariff warning letters this week. Just last year, the U.S. exported more to Brazil than it imported. That’s why Lula called Trump’s claim that the trade relationship is “far from reciprocal” simply inaccurate.
While Trump issued similar tariff threats to other countries, experts say this case is different. Georgetown trade policy professor Marc Busch says using tariffs as political pressure on another country’s internal judicial proceedings is highly provocative.
“If Brazil takes this seriously, it could escalate in a dramatic and qualitatively different way from what Trump has seen with other trading partners,” said Busch.
Lula says his government is exploring retaliation, although Brazil’s Finance Minister Fernando Haddad has tried to reduce tensions. In an interview, he said any dispute “can and must be overcome through diplomacy”.
The last few days have seen an escalation in rhetoric between the two leaders. Earlier this week, Brazil hosted a summit of the BRICS emerging economies nations — bringing together founding members Brazil, Russia, India, China and South Africa, along with newcomers like Egypt and Indonesia. There, in a direct response to Trump’s tariff threats against BRICS countries, Lula reacted. “We don’t want an emperor — we are sovereign nations,” he said.
The tariff threats have shaken Brazilian exporters. Gláucio de Castro, a coffee producer and president of a large producers’ federation in Minas Gerais, said that although he supports Trump’s policy, this measure would harm Brazil’s economy.
“I agree with Trump’s thinking,” he said. “But it’s not right to commercially harm our country — it’s really detrimental to us. Brazil is the world’s largest coffee exporter, and high tariffs could skyrocket prices for U.S. consumers. The country also exports aircraft, steel and oil to the U.S., meaning the effects could extend across several industries.
Source: npr.org by Carrie Kahn