Lula says Brazil 'scares those who think they own the world' and claims to have 'a limit to how much fighting' with the US.

247 - President Luiz Inácio Lula da Silva (PT) stated that Brazil has been bothering global powers by adopting an assertive and active stance in foreign policy and that his administration has limits in its confrontation with the United States. The statement was made at a PT event this Sunday (3).

"It's very difficult for a left-wing party, as we defend several principles, when we announce something good, people are always demanding what's missing," said Lula. According to him, there is a constant demand for more radical positions, which, for a government, is not viable. "The government has to do what it can do."

Commenting on the current tension involving the taxation of Brazilian products by the United States, Lula was direct: “I have a limit to how much I can argue with the American government. I can't say everything I think I should say. I have to say what I think is possible to say. I think we have to do what is necessary.”

The president quoted a phrase that, according to him, guides his vision of foreign policy: "The thing that guides me is a phrase by Chico Buarque: I like the PT (Workers' Party) because it doesn't speak softly to the United States and it doesn't speak harshly to Bolivia. We speak on equal terms with both. That's the logic of politics."

Lula also highlighted Brazil's progress on the international stage since the beginning of his third term, emphasizing the opening of new markets and the growing recognition of the country. "Do you know how many markets we opened in just two and a half years? 398 new markets for Brazilian products," he said.

For him, Brazil's image has changed radically. "Our return to the Presidency of this country was as if we had opened a large gate, where everyone wants to talk to Brazil and Brazil wants to talk to everyone. And anyone who travels the world knows the level of respect Brazil enjoys abroad."

The president cited international events organized by the country, such as the G20 meeting, the BRICS summit, and the upcoming Climate Conference (COP), to support his argument that Brazil's leading role is unsettling to sectors that traditionally dominate the global geopolitical scene.

“This is starting to scare people who think they own the world. 'How can a country that until yesterday was treated like a banana republic suddenly want to speak up? Wanting to say that it's necessary to create a trading currency so as not to depend on the dollar? How can a country dare to challenge the great power?'” he questioned. And he concluded: “We don't want to challenge. We just want to say: 'I want to pass.' That's all.”