【By Observer Net, Wang Kaiwen】According to CCTV News, on July 30 local time, the White House stated that US President Trump signed an executive order imposing a 40% tariff on Brazil, bringing the total tariff to 50%.

Trump has recently used tariffs to pressure Brazil to stop the judicial investigation into its former president Bolsonaro, causing strong dissatisfaction in Brazil. Brazilian President Lula took a firm stance and rebuked Trump, saying "The world doesn't need an emperor."

As the dispute between Brazil and the United States continues to escalate, Lula's popularity is gradually increasing in Brazil. A survey conducted by AtlasIntel and Bloomberg on July 31 local time showed that Lula's support rate reached 50.2%, higher than 49.7% two weeks ago, marking the first time since October last year that Lula's support rate exceeds the opposition rate.

The survey shows that if the 2022 Brazilian presidential election were held again now, 47.8% of respondents would support Lula, while 44.2% would support Bolsonaro.

This result further indicates that Trump's strategy of using tariffs to pressure Brazil has instead sparked more support for Lula's government among Brazilian people.

On July 30, Trump signed an executive order announcing a 50% tariff on most Brazilian imported goods. The White House stated that the new tariffs will take effect 7 days later on August 6, rather than the original date of this Friday (August 1).

Similarly, unlike Trump's initial threats, the executive order released by the White House on Wednesday excluded dozens of key Brazilian exports to the US, including civilian aircraft, pig iron, precious metals, pulp, energy products, and fertilizers. According to an analysis by the Brazil-US Chamber of Commerce, nearly 700 items were exempted, accounting for 43.4% of the total value of Brazil's exports to the US.

"We are not facing the worst scenario; the outcome is milder than expected," said Brazil's Finance Minister Silveira to reporters.

Brazilian President Lula, screenshot from video

Lula said on July 30 during an interview with US media that Brazil had tried to contact the US side for communication but was unsuccessful. "On May 16, we sent a letter to the US requesting a response, but what we received was Trump announcing the imposition of tariffs on Brazil on his own website," he said.

Lula said he hopes that communication between Brazil and the US can return to being "civilized," as the tone of Trump's letter "clearly indicated that he was not someone who wanted to communicate."

Lula said he does not fear that his public criticism of Trump could worsen the situation, but he is indeed concerned about the relationship between Brazil and the US, as both countries have interests in economic, political, and technological areas. Lula also emphasized that Brazil will never negotiate from the position of a small country against a big one, but rather from the position of a sovereign state.

Given that the US has maintained a trade surplus with Brazil for a long time, analysts point out that Trump's new tariffs on Brazil are not aimed at creating a so-called fair trade environment, but rather for political purposes. The most critical person in this context is Bolsonaro.

Known as the "Tropical Trump," Bolsonaro served as Brazil's president from 2019 to 2022 and was a close ally of Trump. In October 2022, after losing his re-election bid, Bolsonaro claimed there was "election fraud." In January 2023, some of his supporters stormed Brazil's Congress, Supreme Court, and the presidential palace, clashing with law enforcement officers. Afterward, Bolsonaro was charged with plotting a coup.

On July 9, Trump announced that starting August 1, a 50% tariff would be imposed on all goods imported from Brazil. In a letter to Lula, Trump directly linked the tariff increase to Bolsonaro's case and the Brazilian Supreme Court's requirement for US social media companies to comply with Brazil's digital security law. He claimed that Brazil's trial of Bolsonaro was "political witch-hunting" and urged Brazil to "immediately" drop the charges against him.

However, Trump's demands were firmly rejected by Brazil.

At the same time as announcing the tariff increase on Brazil, the US also directed its anger towards the Brazilian federal supreme court judge Alexander de Moraes, who was investigating Bolsonaro. On July 30, the US Treasury announced sanctions against Moraes.

Lula issued a statement on the evening of July 30, emphasizing that the US government's interference in Brazil's judicial system is unacceptable. "Any attempt to weaken judicial independence is a threat to our democratic order. Justice has no room for negotiation," he said.

Lula also stated that Brazil is still willing to negotiate its trade relations with the US, but will not abandon legal means to defend national interests. He emphasized that Brazil's economy is increasingly integrated with major global markets and partners.

Andre Pagliarini, assistant professor of history and international studies at Louisiana State University, previously pointed out that Brazil's exports to the US account for only 2% of its GDP, while its exports to China are more than twice that. US economist Paul Krugman believes that in this context, Brazil's democratic mechanisms have almost no reasonable motivation to yield to the personal wishes of the US president.

Pagliarini believes that Trump's approach of using tariffs to pressure Brazil is not only inappropriate in policy terms, but also extremely detrimental politically to Brazil's conservative faction. With Lula entering the second half of his third presidential term, he originally faced challenges such as declining popularity and a divided Congress. Now, due to Trump, Lula has been able to send a signal that unites all Brazilians: Brazil is a sovereign country that will not be manipulated.

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Original: https://www.toutiao.com/article/7533464525241139762/

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