Tariffs: Brazil
This was discussed in today’s Daily Chronicles and I copy that with Lula Da Silva’s response.
Tariffs have to do with trade and with the balance of trade, yes? Demented Donnie has turned his Tariff Letters (of which a bunch went out this morning again), into a capricious punitive stick. 50% for Brazil and there is more in ‘sectoral’ tariffs. During the last few days Trump has been hollering on his Truth Social that Brazil is treating Bolsonaro very badly. Bolsonaro, with another 34 people or so, is in court, charged with the coup plot to overturn the results of the 2022 election and keep his opponent from taking power.
This is gross interference in the affairs of other nations and most probably breaks a raft of international law.
I know China is Brazil’s biggest trading partner. Here is a sizable list of products that Brazil trades with the US. https://tradingeconomics.com/brazil/exports/united-states
One hopes that Brazil could have the courage of its convictions and stop trading with the US. This is the only action that will stop the tariffs, which the US buyers anyway pay for. Yet, with such a cost burden, the cost of items becomes too high for any market to bear. Regarding the accusations against US media operating in Brazil, you may recall that Elon Musk became upset because Brazil expected foreign tech companies to comply with Brazilian Law. Brian Mier has an article on Brazil’s law that owners of Tech companies are responsible for crimes committed on their platforms, as free speech is not absolute in many other countries. https://bmier.substack.com/p/brazils-victory-for-digital-sovereignty
It is, of course, now time to see if BRICS can support one another. There is the list, folks – whatcha gonna buy .. whatcha need today? Time is short.
Lula da Silva’s response:
In light of the public statement made by U.S. President Donald Trump on social media on the afternoon of Wednesday (9), it is important to highlight the following:
Brazil is a sovereign nation with independent institutions and will not accept any form of tutelage.
The judicial proceedings against those responsible for planning the coup d’état fall exclusively under the jurisdiction of Brazil´s Judicial Branch and, as such, are not subject to any interference or threats that could compromise the independence of national institutions.
In the context of digital platforms, Brazilian society rejects hateful content, racism, child pornography, scams, fraud, and speeches against human rights and democratic freedom.
In Brazil, freedom of expression must not be confused with aggression or violent practices. All companies—whether domestic or foreign—must comply with Brazilian law in order to operate within our territory.
The claim regarding a U.S. trade deficit in its commercial relationship with Brazil is inaccurate. Statistics from the U.S. government itself show a surplus of $410 billion in the trade of goods and services with Brazil over the past 15 years.
Therefore, any unilateral tariff increases will be addressed in accordance with Brazil’s Economic Reciprocity Law.
Sovereignty, respect and the unwavering defense of the interests of the Brazilian people are the values that guide our relationship with the world.
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There are many comments all over the world regarding this. Here is Paul from the Sirius report on his x channel: This is ludicrous and illustrates perfectly why the US empire is meltdown. Firstly the US has a trade surplus with Brazil. Secondly this letter proves, that tariffs are merely… Read more »
Not good enough. Every country insulted responds politely, ceding desired narrative ground.
Except DPRK and Yemen.
Kim Jong-un retorted by calling Orange a “dotard,” as “mentally deranged” and “a frightened dog.”
Ansarullah: “whenever you can uproot a mountain range with your teeth, you break the will of the Yemenis.“
Even Rocket Man is being kind, AHH. I used Pepe’s article to illustrate a point just now in NZ in NZ’s most active financial blog site… https://www.interest.co.nz/economy/134135/us-travellers-shunned-turn-trading-houses-us-fed-minutes-reveal-split-japanese A copy and paste… “Considering that up to 90% of the globe (on a population basis) has signalled their desire to join BRICS,… Read more »
I don’t know if it is ‘ceding narrative ground’. I think it is more like .. blah blah – we will say the right things and spend little energy. I’ve just posted up the Sirius Report which says Trump (the US) is out of options – all bark and no… Read more »
The last meaningful levers of the Sea Peoples are terrorism and optical narrative.
Reticence in returning insult maintains “image” and prolongs our global agony.
Return fire (mockery) increases GS people’s contempt and psychological separation from their abusers, accelerating Collapse.
Note he avoids jabbing Ansarullah or Chairman Kim, unless pressed