Lula condemns Trump in Venezuela, but spares Putin in Ukraine

President Luiz Inácio Lula da Silva’s (PT) condemnation of President Donald Trump’s action to capture dictator Nicolás Maduro and overthrow the tyrannical regime in Venezuela contrasts with the ambiguous tone adopted towards autocratic president Vladimir Putin in the invasion of Ukraine.

The duality in Brazilian foreign policy reflects the Lula government’s strategy of strengthening the Brics bloc (formed by Brazil, Russia, India, China and South Africa, Egypt, Ethiopia, Indonesia, Iran and the United Arab Emirates), which recently included Venezuela and other non-democratic countries, while rejecting North American influence in Latin America, reinforced under the Trump administration.

In this report, the People’s Gazette lists the main manifestations of Lula and the Brazilian government in relation to the two conflicts, highlighting the difference in treatment in the two cases.

Lula and Venezuela’s defense against US pressure against Maduro

In demonstrations about Venezuela, the Brazilian government often abandons neutrality to classify US actions as inhumane measures and flagrant violations of sovereignty. In May 2023, upon receiving Nicolás Maduro in Brazil, Lula spared no criticism of the American government, comparing the impact of the newly imposed sanctions to war crimes.

“I always think that the blockade is worse than a war, because in war, normally, soldiers who are in battle die, but the blockade kills children, women, people who have nothing to do with the ideological dispute that is at stake,” said the Brazilian president at Palácio do Planalto.

At the time, the then left-wing president of Chile criticized Lula. “It is not a construction of a narrative, it is a reality, it is serious… I saw the pain of hundreds of thousands of Venezuelans who today live in our country and who demand a firm and clear position”, said Gabriel Boric, at the South American Summit.

Tamara Taraciuk Broner, director of Human Rights Watchcriticized the lack of emphasis on human rights in Lula’s statements about American pressure. “Speaking of ‘narratives’ while there are documented UN reports on crimes against humanity in Venezuela is an insult to the victims and weakens Brazil’s moral authority,” said the activist.

In October last year, faced with the increase in the American naval fleet in the Caribbean at the beginning of Donald Trump’s second term, Lula’s tone rose. “No president should make a decision about Venezuela… What we say publicly is that [a Venezuela] It is a country of people and dignity. It is necessary to respect the self-determination of the people”, stated Lula in a press interview in Brasília.

Still in October, Lula was questioned about American operations against drug trafficking on the Venezuelan coast. “You can’t just say you’re going to invade another country’s territory. You have to respect the Constitution, the self-determination of people and territorial sovereignty,” said Lula, in an interview in Indonesia.

This Saturday (3), after the bombings in Caracas and the capture of Maduro, Lula declared that the USA “crossed an unacceptable line”. “These acts represent a very serious affront to Venezuela’s sovereignty,” he said in a statement.

Lula’s ambiguity regarding Putin’s aggression against Ukraine

In contrast to the clarity in defending Venezuela, Lula’s statements about Russia are marked by a division of responsibilities between the aggressor and the attacked, avoiding direct and exclusive condemnation of Vladimir Putin.

In May 2023, in one of the statements that generated the most friction with the West, Lula suggested that Ukraine was also responsible for starting the conflict. “I continue to think that when one doesn’t want it, two don’t fight. It’s necessary to find someone who wants peace, a word that until now has been very little used,” said the Brazilian president, during the G7 summit in Japan.

In April of that year, he criticized the US for sending weapons to help Ukraine respond to Russian aggression. Washington sees military support as essential to Ukraine’s survival; for Lula, it would encourage conflict. “The United States needs to stop encouraging war and start talking about peace,” said Lula, then in Portugal.

At the time, John Kirby, spokesman for the US National Security Council, criticized Lula for blaming Ukraine for the invasion. “Brazil is parroting Russian and Chinese propaganda without observing the facts… The way Brazil approached this issue in a pragmatic way, suggesting that the US and Europe have no interest in peace, is deeply problematic,” he said.

In September last year, after Russian bombings of civilian centers in Kiev, the official notes from Itamaraty maintained an impersonal tone, without mentioning Russia as the author of the shots. “The Brazilian government expresses its deep regret for the victims of the intense attacks carried out against Ukraine… It also reaffirms its willingness to contribute so that a diplomatic solution to the conflict can be reached,” Itamaraty said in a statement.