Lula hits back at Trump over judiciary attacks, says US president would face trial in Brazil if January 6 riots happened there

Brazilian President Lula da Silva has pushed back against President Donald Trump’s campaign targeting the country’s judiciary, saying the US leader would face trial in Brazil had the January 6 US Capitol attacks taken place there, the Guardian reported.

Lula’s comments come amid what analysts describe as one of the deepest diplomatic rifts between Washington and Brasília in decades. Trump has imposed 50% tariffs on Brazilian imports and sanctioned a supreme court justice, the moves which are widely considered as an attempt to aid Trump’s far-right ally and former Brazilian President Jair Bolsonaro, who faces up to 40 years in prison over allegations of plotting a coup after losing the 2022 election to Lula.

Bolsonaro could face up to 40 years in prison when Brazil’s supreme court delivers its verdict in the coming weeks. Trump has denounced the case as a “witch-hunt” and urged Brazilian authorities to drop the charges.

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Lula also dismissed US criticism of Brazil’s human rights record after the State Department’s annual report accused his administration of stifling democratic debate and restricting the speech of Bolsonaro supporters, journalists, and elected officials. “There was really no reason to hit Brazil with tariffs, and nor will we accept being told that we don’t respect human rights here in Brazil,” Lula said.

Drawing a sharp contrast between Brazil’s handling of political unrest and Trump’s pardons for January 6 participants, Lula noted that 141 people are serving prison terms for joining the 8 January 2023 riots in Brasília, which prosecutors say formed part of Bolsonaro’s coup attempt. In the US, Trump granted “full, complete and unconditional” pardons to about 1,500 people involved in the Capitol assault soon after taking office last year.

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Lula urged Brazilians not to be intimidated by Trump’s pressure campaign, adding that his administration had repeatedly tried to negotiate with Washington before the tariffs were enacted. According to Brazilian diplomats, those overtures went unanswered, with key decisions reportedly taken within Trump’s inner circle, a group to which they had no access.

Unveiling a long-anticipated aid package on Wednesday to offset the impact of steep US tariffs, Brazil’s government said it would offer credit lines for exporters and increase government purchases of goods struggling to find new markets.

A delegation of Brazilian senators travelled to Washington in the final week of July in a last-ditch effort to defuse tensions. The group, led by Senator Nelsinho Trad, met with business leaders with ties to Brazil and nine US senators, only one of them Republican, Thom Tillis of North Carolina.

“We found views on Brazil were ideologically charged,” Trad told The AP. “But we made an effort to present economic arguments.”

While the delegation was in Washington, Trump signed the order imposing the 50% tariff. But there was relief: not all Brazilian imports would be hit. Exemptions included civil aircraft and parts, aluminium, tin, wood pulp, energy products and fertilizers.

Trad believes Brazil’s outreach may have helped soften the final terms.

“I think the path has to remain one of dialogue and reason so we can make progress on other fronts,” he said.

With inputs from agencies