By Enyichukwu Enemanna
Brazilian President Luiz Inácio Lula da Silva says his United States counterpart, Donald Trump has no right to govern other countries, noting that nations must be allowed to protect their sovereignty and pursue their own interests.
Lula in an interview ahead of the ongoing United Nations General Assembly in New York said Trump was elected to govern the United States but should not impose his will on other countries.
“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 criticised what he described as Trump’s approach of allowing the strongest and wealthiest country to dictate terms to others. “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”.
Lula said countries should be free to determine their own interests without United States’ interference or attempt to impose its rules on them.
“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.
The Brazilian president also criticised tariffs imposed by the Trump administration on Brazilian imports, describing them as “based on lies.”
Lula said Brazil’s exports to the US had fallen by nine percent, while imports from the US declined by 8.5 percent following the tariffs.
He said Brazil had responded by seeking stronger trade relations with other countries, with trade increasing by 20 percent with China, 18 percent with Japan, 16 percent with Germany and 23 percent with the European Union.
“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,” Lula said.
He, however, said Brazil was still negotiating with the United States and would consider reciprocal measures if the talks failed.
The Brazilian President while warning the US against interference in Brazil’s upcoming election also criticised the Trump administration’s actions in Venezuela, saying the United States had created the impression that it was governing the country.
Lula said the situation was not good for Venezuela, the United States or democracy.
He said Venezuela should be allowed to determine its political future through elections rather than having its affairs directed by another country.
