Brazilian President Luiz Inácio Lula da Silva stated Tuesday (Apr. 14) that the US war against Iran led by Donald Trump is reckless and that the US president does not need to threaten the world. He also expressed solidarity with Pope Leo XIV, who exchanged critical remarks with Trump this week.

In Lula’s view, Trump uses rhetoric to try to please the public and convey the idea that the US is an “omnipotent country, of a superior people.” He stated that he admires the US as the world’s largest economy, but this is the result of the hard work of its people.

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“This isn’t because of the president’s authoritarianism. It’s because of the economic situation, the country’s importance, and the level of higher education they have. So Trump didn’t need to go around threatening the world,” President Lula said.

“Trump’s threats are not good for democracy. This war with Iran is reckless,” he added, highlighting the conflict’s consequences for the economy, particularly fuel prices.

On Sunday (12), while commenting on the pope’s criticism of US actions in Iran and Venezuela, Trump stated that Leo XIV is “terrible at foreign policy” and asked him to stop pandering to the radical left. The pope responded that he is not afraid of the US president and that he believes in the Gospel’s message of peace.

“I met with him [Pope Leo XIV] and was very impressed. [I wish] to stand in solidarity with him, because his criticism of President Trump is correct. No one needs to be afraid of anyone,” Lula said in an interview with journalists.

Alexandre Ramagem

Lula also mentioned the recent partnership between Brazil and the US aimed at combating international arms and drug trafficking, and commented on the arrest of former federal representative Alexandre Ramagem by the US Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE).

“I think Ramagem is going to come here. The right wing here in Brazil is saying he was arrested for a minor [traffic] fine, but that’s not true. He was arrested. He had already been sentenced to 16 years in this country [Brazil]. He was a coup plotter who’s been convicted. He has to return to Brazil to serve his sentence,” Lula declared.

Brazilian President Luiz Inácio Lula da Silva stated Tuesday (Mar. 31) that politics has become a business, adding it is necessary to convince the people that a change in Brazil’s political landscape is possible through the election of good candidates.

Lula held his first cabinet meeting of 2026 today and bid farewell to the ministers who will be leaving their posts to run in the elections this October. At the event, Lula confirmed that Alckmin will run for vice-president again.

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“We have a lot of great politicians today, but the truth is that in many cases, politics has become a business,” he noted. “Political offices come at a high price. Someone told me the other day, ‘A federal representative won’t get elected for less than 50 million reais.’ And if that’s true, we’ve reached the end of any sense of integrity in Brazilian politics,” the president went on to argue.

In Lula’s view, everyone is to blame in this process. In a bid not to “bring anyone into the spotlight,” he said, the necessary changes are not being proposed. “And things just keep getting worse, and today we’ve reached a state of decline, including in some institutions.”

Candidacies

According to the president, of the 37 government ministers, at least 18 will step down to run for elected office in October.

Among them is vice-President Geraldo Alckmin, who also served as Minister of Development, Industry, Trade, and Services.

The president and vice-president do not need to resign from office to run in the upcoming election. If they were running for another office, however, they would need to resign.

Politicians who intend to vie for office have until April 4 to leave their current positions, six months before the first round of the elections, which takes place on October 4.

During the meeting, Lula also emphasized he would not appoint new ministers and that the ministries would be headed by members of the current team, such as the then-executive secretary of the Ministry of Finance, Dario Durigan, who took over after Minister Fernando Haddad stepped down.

“We have confidence in the team you’ve put together,” Lula said. “We have a lot to accomplish by December 31, and it is the duty of those who remain to see it through – to ensure the wheels keep turning without any disruption. We can’t start building a new ministry with only nine months left in our term,” he added.