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🇧🇷 Brazil /Economy & Trade

Renan Santos criticizes Lula and Flávio over US tariffs, suggests rare earth deal

From Folha de S.Paulo · () Portuguese

Translated from Portuguese, summarized and contextualized by DistantNews.

At a glance

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  • Presidential hopeful Renan Santos criticized Brazilian President Lula and Flávio Bolsonaro over a 25% tariff on Brazilian products imposed by the U.S.
  • Santos claimed Lula was slow to address the issue, while Bolsonaro was incompetent in negotiations with the U.S.
  • He suggested Brazil could have negotiated by offering rare earth minerals, which are of interest to the U.S.

Renan Santos, a presidential candidate for the Missão party, has sharply criticized President Lula and Flávio Bolsonaro regarding the recent 25% tariff imposed on Brazilian products by the U.S. government. Santos accused Lula of procrastinating on the issue and described Flávio Bolsonaro as incompetent in handling negotiations with the United States.

Santos, who founded the MBL (Movimento Brasil Livre), called Bolsonaro's participation in a USTR hearing on the potential tariffs "ridiculous." He stated that he would have pursued a different negotiation strategy. "I would have negotiated more with the government. They are interested in rare earths, we would have something to offer in a negotiation," Santos said, referring to minerals that are strategically important commodities, alongside beef, coffee, and fruits.

I would have negotiated more with the government. They are interested in rare earths, we would have something to offer in a negotiation

— Renan SantosExplaining his approach to trade negotiations with the United States.

Santos's remarks come as he seeks to gain traction in the upcoming presidential election. A recent Genial/Quaest poll showed him with 3% of voter intentions in the first round, tied within the margin of error with Ronaldo Caiado (PSD) at 4% and Romeu Zema (Novo) at 2%. The poll indicated Lula leading with 40% of intentions, followed by Flávio Bolsonaro with 28%. The new U.S. tariffs add another layer of complexity to the political landscape.

ridículo

— Renan SantosDescribing Flávio Bolsonaro's participation in a U.S. trade hearing.
DistantNews Editorial

Originally published by Folha de S.Paulo in Portuguese. Translated, summarized, and contextualized by our editorial team with added local perspective. Read our editorial standards.

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