Trump Says Us, Brazil Will ‘do Very Well Together’ Following Call With Lula

President Donald Trump spoke Monday with Brazilian President Luiz Inácio Lula da Silva, their first substantive conversation since the U.S. imposed 50 percent tariffs on Brazilian goods this summer and a sign that the White House may be looking to de-escalate tensions.

Trump, in a post on Truth Social, described it as a “very good telephone call,” that covered the economy and trade, among other subjects.

“We will be having further discussions, and will get together in the not too distant future, both in Brazil and the United States,” Trump said. “I enjoyed the call — Our Countries will do very well together!”

The two spoke for 30 minutes via videoconference, discussed meeting in person and exchanged phone numbers, according to a readout from Lula’s office. Finance Minister Fernando Haddad, who addressed Brazilian media after the call, characterized it as “positive.”

The effort to mend fences comes after a friendly but brief conversation nearly two weeks ago backstage at the United Nations General Assembly in New York City.

“At least for about 39 seconds, we had excellent chemistry,” Trump said of the September meeting.

The Trump administration levied tariffs and sanctions on Brazil, in retaliation for what Trump saw as unfair treatment of far-right former Brazilian President Jair Bolsonaro. It had little effect on Bolsonaro’s trial. The former president was convicted and sentenced to 27 years in prison last month in connection with a 2023 insurrection attempt against Lula’s government.

Trump, whose aides worked hard to derail Bolsonaro’s trial, sees Brazil’s former leader as a staunch political ally and has likened his prosecution to what he faced after the Jan. 6, 2021, Capitol insurrection in Washington. Lula, in response, criticized Trump for efforts to intervene in his country’s domestic affairs, something most leaders traditionally have avoided.

For months, Brazilian officials lacked a direct contact in the White House and were left reading between the lines of social media posts from Trump and Secretary of State Marco Rubio to divine the U.S.’s next steps. They have also at times been confused by the U.S.’s rhetoric, with Rubio ramping up attacks on Brazil as Trump himself appeared to be deescalating the situation.

Following Bolsonaro’s sentencing, the U.S. revoked visas for six additional Brazilian judicial officials and the Treasury department imposed sanctions on the wife of Supreme Court Justice Alexandre de Moraes, who was sanctioned by the U.S. in July. While still an unwelcome move by Brazil, it was a far more targeted reaction than many officials in Brasilia feared.

The relatively muted moves from the U.S. in recent weeks have had Brazilian officials questioning to what extent Trump is personally invested in Brazil and Bolsonaro, who the U.S. president has called a “friend,” or whether he is being egged on by advisers like Jason Miller and Steve Bannon. Trump only weighed in on Bolsonaro’s trial after a gathering of so-called BRICS nations, a coalition of emerging economies that has long drawn Trump’s ire, in Rio de Janeiro in July.

Even as relations appear to be warming, Trump’s appointment of Rubio to lead conversations with Brazil could prove problematic for those hoping for a rapprochement. While Bolsonaro allies initially appealed to Trump to champion their cause, they have since turned to Rubio as he carves out an increasingly hawkish profile in Latin America.