US President Donald Trump has no authority to rule other nations, according to Brazilian President Luiz Inacio Lula da Silva.
Prior to the current United Nations General Assembly (UNGA) in New York, Lula participated in an exclusive interview with Christiane Amanpour of CNN.
According to Lula, Trump’s foreign policy strategy is predicated on the idea that the most powerful nation should set the terms for other nations.
“President Trump was elected to be the US president. He has the right to govern the US, but he doesn’t have the right to govern other countries,” Lula said.
“He doesn’t have the right to impose his will. He has to have the willingness to negotiate.
“He has a way of governing that I’m stronger, I’m the mightiest, I’m the richest, I can do everything, and all the others have to obey. I don’t agree with that. It’s the stronger law.”
According to the president of Brazil, nations ought to be free to defend their sovereignty and follow their own interests without US intervention.
“We just want to say that every country has their own sovereignty. They take care of their own interests and the US cannot impose their rules over the others,” he added.
Brazil’s President said countries should have the freedom to defend their sovereignty and pursue their national interests without US intervention.
Brazil Tariff
Following a year-long investigation by the US Trade Representative (USTR), the US imposed a 25 per cent tariff on selected Brazilian imports in July.
The US said the measures responded to what it described as “unreasonable Brazilian regulations” affecting digital trade, electronic payments, intellectual property, ethanol market access, anti-corruption enforcement and illegal deforestation.
However, Brazil President Luiz Inácio Lula da Silva said the tariffs were “based on lies” and that his government had responded by strengthening trade ties with other countries.
Lula said the tariffs contributed to a 9 per cent decline in Brazil’s exports to the US and an 8.5 per cent drop in US imports.
He added that trade increased by 20 per cent with China, 18 per cent with Japan and 60 per cent with Germany.
He also noted that Brazil’s trade with the European Union also grew by 23 percent. “So I’m not going to just try to cry out about the milk that was spilled on the floor. I’m going to seek other partners to try to buy and sell,” he said.
‘US Giving the impression of governing Venezuela’
Lula also condemned the Trump administration’s actions in Venezuela.
The US detained former Venezuelan President Nicolás Maduro during a military operation in January.
Following Maduro’s arrest, his Vice President, Delcy Rodríguez, took the oath of office as interim president.
Trump said the US would temporarily take control of the Venezuelan government after Maduro’s arrest.
However, Lula said the US had acted as though it now controlled Venezuela.
“The US conveys the idea that they’re governing Venezuela,” he said.
“Every document that we read, the agreements, it looks like the US is the big boss of Venezuela. The sovereignty of the country has ended.”
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