Brazil’s Lula asks Trump to scrap tariffs as leaders agree to meet after ‘friendly’ call

Video call boosts prospects for cooperation despite months of tension over tariffs and the case against former Brazilian president Jair Bolsonaro

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Brazilian President Luiz Inácio Lula da Silva. File photo: AFP

Published: 6:14am, 7 Oct 2025Updated: 10:47am, 7 Oct 2025

Brazilian President Luiz Inacio Lula da Silva and US President Donald Trump agreed to meet in person soon after a friendly video call on Monday, Brazil’s government said, boosting prospects for a thaw in bilateral relations that are at their worst in decades.

During the leaders’ 30-minute call, Lula’s office said in a statement that he and Trump discussed their positive impressions of a brief encounter at the United Nations last month and exchanged phone numbers to open a direct line of communication.

Trump said on social media that the call was “very good”, with a focus on the countries’ economic and trade relations.

“We will be having further discussions, and will get together in the not-too-distant future, both in Brazil and the United States,” he wrote.

Lula suggested a meeting during this month’s summit of the Association of Southeast Asian Nations (Asean) in Malaysia and expressed his willingness to travel to the United States, his office said.

The two leaders have been at odds for months over the trial and conviction of Brazil’s former president Jair Bolsonaro.

Trump hiked a tariff on many Brazilian goods from 10 per cent to 50 per cent because of the case, which he called a “witch hunt”.

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