Brazil’s Lula proposes BRICS leaders meeting to respond to Trump

A small country alone has no bargaining power against the US, the Brazilian president said

Brazil will discuss a response to US President Donald Trump’s tariffs with other BRICS nations, Brazilian President Luiz Inacio Lula da Silva told Reuters in an interview published on Wednesday.

Earlier in the day, Trump announced he would raise tariffs on India – another founding BRICS nation – to 50% by late August. Trump already levied 50% duties on Brazilian goods earlier this week in a move that Brasilia condemned as an illegal attempt to politically influence its internal policy.

Lula said he will reach out to other BRICS nations and discuss how to tackle the tariffs. In addition, he said he would reach out to his Chinese and Indian counterparts, Xi Jinping and Narendra Modi, followed by other leaders, Reuters wrote.

“I’m going to try to discuss with them about how each one is doing in this situation, what the implications are for each country, so we can make a decision,” Lula said.

According to the Brazilian leader, Trump is attempting to “dismantle multilateralism,” and impose “unilateralism, where he negotiates one-on-one with other countries,” and where the US has the advantage.

“What bargaining power does a small Latin American country have against the United States? None,” Lula said.