Brazil and China Hail “Best Moment in History” for Bilateral Ties, Pledge Stronger Cooperation Amid U.S. Tensions
Photo: Palácio do Planalto.
Brazilian President Luiz Inácio Lula da Silva and Chinese President Xi Jinping spoke by phone on Monday, August 11, reaffirming what Xi described as the “best moment in history” for bilateral relations. According to China’s state-run Xinhua agency, Xi praised the “shared future” and the smooth alignment of development strategies between the two countries, underscoring their united position as leading nations of the Global South.
The call came shortly after Lula announced his intention to coordinate with other BRICS leaders on a joint response to the 50% tariff imposed by U.S. President Donald Trump on Brazilian products. Washington has also threatened similar measures against countries importing Russian oil, Brazil among them, and, just a week earlier, Trump imposed an additional 25% tariff on India, another BRICS member, for purchasing crude from Moscow.
Xi said China was ready to work with Brazil to “set an example of unity and self-reliance among the main countries of the Global South” and voiced Beijing’s support for the Brazilian people “in defending their national sovereignty and safeguarding their legitimate rights and interests.”
In a post on social media platform X, Lula said they exchanged views on the current international context, ongoing peace efforts between Russia and Ukraine, and the roles of the G20 and BRICS “in defending multilateralism.” The leaders agreed to broaden cooperation into sectors such as health, oil and gas, the digital economy, and satellites, while continuing to identify new business opportunities between the two economies. Lula also confirmed that China will send a high-level delegation to the COP30 climate summit in Belém to work with Brazil toward the conference’s success.
Relations between Brazil and the United States have been strained in recent weeks. Lula told Reuters he has not contacted the White House to negotiate on the tariffs because Trump “has shown no interest in making agreements.” He criticized the U.S. president’s justification that the tariffs were linked to legal proceedings against former Brazilian president Jair Bolsonaro, calling it an unacceptable intrusion into Brazil’s sovereignty. “It is not admissible for the United States or any other country, big or small, to try to dictate rules to a sovereign nation like Brazil,” Lula said.
* Original text in Spanish. Translated by Large Language Model (LLM) technology.
Main Source:
A conversa entre Lula e Xi Jinping: laços entre os dois países estão no melhor momento, diz líder chinês – BBC News Brasil
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