Brazilian president warns of confrontation risk after Trump’s new tariffs

Brazilian President Luis Inácio Lula da Silva urged the United States to treat all countries equally and abandon pressure-based policies, AFP reports.

“We do not want a new Cold War. We do not want interference in the affairs of other countries,” Lula told journalists in New Delhi, addressing US President Donald Trump.

His remarks came after Washington decided to impose additional tariffs on imports from all countries. The initial rate was 10 per cent, later raised by President Trump to 15 percent.

Lula said he did not want to respond to the decisions of another country’s Supreme Court but expressed hope that relations between Brazil and the United States would “soon return to normal.”

The Brazilian leader is expected to travel to Washington next month for a meeting with Trump.

“I am confident that after our conversation, relations between Brazil and the US will normalize,” the 80-year-old president said, adding that Brazil only wants “to live in peace, create jobs, and improve the lives of its people.”

By Khagan Isayev