Trump and Lula dodge the press after meeting at the White House

WashingtonThe President of Brazil, Luiz Inácio Lula da Silva, arrived at the White House this Thursday at eleven in the morning, met with US President Donald Trump, and left without holding the planned joint press conference. After keeping journalists waiting for more than three hours without explaining what was happening behind the door, the Republican published a message on Truth Social stating that the visit was concluded: "We discussed many topics, including trade and tariffs. The meeting went very well." According to the magnate, "additional meetings will be agreed upon" in the coming months.

The White House did not distribute any official photos, but the office of the Brazilian president did. However, this was hours after the meeting ended.

In principle, the objective of the visit was to discuss the commercial relationship between the two countries, damaged by the tariffs that Trump imposed and later reduced. Also planned for the meeting were the US administration's pressures to classify major criminal gangs such as Comando Vermelho and PCC as terrorist organizations. Exactly one year ago, Brazil's National Secretary of Public Security, Mario Sarrubo, announced that they were denying the request made by the White House.

After leaving journalists without any joint statement or even an official photo, Lula appeared later alone from the Brazilian embassy in Washington and positively assessed the meeting. With a defiant, but not hostile, tone, he defended that he believes the United States and Brazil can resolve their differences: "I am optimistic." He also explained that he had spoken about the situation of organized crime in Brazil and the oil blockade that the United States has applied to Cuba. Lula said that Trump assured him that he does not intend to invade the Caribbean island, after having hinted at it several times in recent weeks. Although the Brazilian made it clear that, at least, that is what he understood from the translation the interpreter made for him while they were talking.

It has not been clear why the joint press conference was canceled at the last minute. Initially, after a half-hour delay from the scheduled time for the appearance, the White House asked reporters to continue waiting. Lula's visit to Washington was marked by unease following the pressures that Trump attempted to exert against Brazil over the conviction of Jair Bolsonaro. In 2022, the republican's far-right ally attempted to emulate the January 6th Capitol assault after Lula defeated him at the polls. The US president did not like the resolution of the Brazilian courts and decided to punish the country with 50% tariffs.

Trump's pressures favor Lula

Taxes on Brazilian products, including meat and coffee, also sought to damage Lula's image. Paradoxically, the economic pressure with which Trump wanted to harm Lula's government had the opposite effect: it reactivated support for the Brazilian president and his left-wing allies. Polls showed an increase in the popularity of his government just before elections in 2026 that look complicated for the Brazilian left.

The defense of Brazil's sovereignty against US pressure has also internationally catapulted Lula as one of the referents of the anti-Trump left. Last April, he was one of the star guests at the progressive summit that the Spanish president, Pedro Sánchez, held in Barcelona. In his speech, the Brazilian leader did not hold back when it came to criticizing Trump: "We don't like emperors who think they are the kings of the world."

In November last year, after the price of beef increased by 14%, Trump signed a new executive order to remove all tariffs on all Brazilian food products, including coffee and meat. But despite the retreat, the relationship between Washington and Brasilia had already been badly damaged. Furthermore, Lula proved that it was possible to stand up to the magnate's blackmailing practices.

The trip of the Brazilian president to the White House had been announced with discretion and without much fanfare. Unlike other leaders, such as Colombia's Gustavo Petro, who announced their meeting with Trump with enough foresight to build political momentum, Lula's visit became known on Tuesday through the press. Yesterday, before boarding the plane to Washington, Lula shared an image, and today he also shared the video of the moment Trump received him. Although it was the first face-to-face meeting at the White House between the two leaders since Trump returned to power, it was not the first time they had met. Last year they met in Malaysia and in September, during the United Nations General Assembly, they briefly encountered each other.