Lula's government wants to "decontaminate" Brazil-US relations.

247 - The government of President Luiz Inácio Lula da Silva (PT) is intensifying efforts to restore mutual trust with the United States, following a diplomatic crisis that shook relations between the two countries. The government's current strategy is to keep Brazilian domestic political issues off the bilateral agenda, in order to prevent issues such as those involving Jair Bolsonaro (PL) from interfering in talks with Washington.

According to the newspaper The GlobeThe fear in Brasília is that the President of the United States, Donald Trump, who maintains an alliance with Bolsonaro, will try to influence Brazilian domestic politics during the 2026 election period. Such intervention could further harm investments and bilateral trade between the countries. The Lula government, therefore, is working to "decontaminate" the relationship with the US and focus on more pragmatic aspects of the partnership.

Although the recent phone call between Presidents Lula and Trump signaled a resumption of dialogue, sources close to the government say that a complete resolution of the impasses will not happen quickly. The main priority at this moment is to seek the removal of sanctions affecting Brazilian citizens, such as those imposed on Supreme Federal Court (STF) Justice Alexandre de Moraes. In addition, Brazil is committed to resolving the 50% surcharge applied to Brazilian products since August of this year.

A meeting between the two presidents is expected to take place soon, with Malaysia emerging as one of the most likely locations for the encounter, on the sidelines of the Association of Southeast Asian Nations (ASEAN) summit at the end of October. However, Brazilian sources admit, on condition of anonymity, that if the meeting does not take place in Kuala Lumpur, it will be difficult to schedule a new meeting this year, unless Trump decides to participate in COP30 in Belém (PA) in November, which is considered unlikely.

In a display of Washington's pragmatism, US Secretary of State Marco Rubio called Brazilian Foreign Minister Mauro Vieira. During the conversation, they agreed on a meeting in Washington, scheduled for the middle of next week. Rubio will accompany Trump on a trip to Egypt, should the visit be confirmed.

Brazilian diplomatic sources believe that the United States is revising its stance towards Brazil for essentially pragmatic reasons. The American government has reportedly recognized that it cannot continue neglecting its relationship with Brazil, especially since products consumed on a large scale by Americans, such as coffee and meat, have become considerably more expensive. During his conversation with Lula, Trump reportedly emphasized that the American people miss Brazilian coffee.

Furthermore, there is a perception that the political pressure exerted by the White House has not yielded the expected results. Although the Brazilian government is cautious and awaiting the next steps in bilateral talks, the prospects for a more solid rapprochement are viewed with optimism, largely due to the pragmatic nature that has guided recent interactions.