By Lisandra Paraguassu
BRASILIA, Aug 21 (Reuters) – Brazil’s President Luiz Inacio Lula da Silva and U.S. President Donald Trump spoke by phone on Friday and discussed tariffs Washington recently imposed on Brazilian goods, according to a statement from Brazil’s government.
During the call, Lula reiterated that negotiations are the best way to resolve the dispute, while Trump suggested that officials from both countries meet as soon as possible, the statement said.
The U.S. government announced 25% tariffs last month on some Brazilian goods, alleging unfair trade practices, as well as 12.5% tariffs on goods from dozens of nations, including Brazil, linked to allegations of lax enforcement of forced labor bans.
Lula said in the statement that the tariffs would harm both economies and that the allegations cited by Washington to justify the measures, including concerns over deforestation, intellectual property, corruption, Brazil’s Pix instant payment system, ethanol and imports allegedly tied to forced labor, were unfounded.
According to a Brazilian official present during the call, the relationship between both presidents remains “very friendly,” but the Brazilian government does not expect any changes in the tariffs before October, when Brazil holds elections.
“The goal was to restart the negotiations,” said the official, who asked to remain anonymous.
After the presidents spoke, U.S. Trade Representative Jamieson Greer called the Brazilian Minister of Development, Industry, Trade and Services, Marcio Elias Rosa, to set up a date to talk, which Rosa said will be decided on Monday.
Earlier this month, Brazil started a process seeking further consultations with U.S. trade authorities, a move that could lead to reciprocal measures against Washington.
Lula reiterated in the call Brazil’s interest in cooperating with the U.S. to combat organized crime, but said criminal gangs operating in Brazil should not be equated with terrorist organizations, the label Washington applied to two of them in May.
(Reporting by Lisandra Paraguassu; Writing by Isabel Teles, Editing by Rod Nickel and Rosalba O’Brien)
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