Speaking to journalists at the White House this Friday (27), the president of the United States, Donald Trump, said that he “gets along very well” with the president of Brazil, Luiz Inácio Lula da Silva (PT), and that he will “love” to welcome him to the White House. Trump made the statement when asked by reporter Patrícia Vasconcellos, correspondent for SBT News in Washington, about the possible official meeting between the two leaders.
“Well, I get along very well with the president of Brazil,” Trump said. “I’m going to love doing this,” he added, vaguely answering whether there was already a date to receive Lula in Washington.
The public signaling takes place amid diplomatic negotiations for Lula’s official visit to the United States. The PT member declared earlier this week, in conversation with journalists during an official meeting in Seoul, South Korea, that he intends to travel to the USA on March 16, but confirmation depends on Trump’s schedule.
Lula stated that he intends to take a “technical” delegation to the United States to discuss cooperation in the fight against organized crime, including representatives from the Federal Police, the Federal Revenue Service and the Ministries of Justice and Finance.
“If he (Trump) really wants to combat organized crime, drug trafficking, arms trafficking, Brazil will be an excellent partner,” he declared. “I have a long agenda with President Trump, which is an issue that is eminently in the interest of Brazil, there is another that is in the interest of multilateralism, there is another that is in the interest of democracy, and I will talk about that with him”, he added.
Earlier this month, the Secretary of the Treasury of the United States, Scott Bessent, stated during a conference promoted by the bank BTG Pactual, in São Paulo, that the relationship between Trump and Lula “is in the right tone” after a beginning that he classified as “troubled”. According to Bessent, there is “good will” on the part of the Brazilian government in its relationship with Washington.
