Socialist President of Brazil Luiz Inácio Lula da Silva claimed on Thursday that President Donald Trump told him during his meeting that he has “no plans to invade Cuba.”
President Trump held a private, closed-door meeting and lunch with Lula at the White House on Thursday that reportedly lasted for about three hours, before Lula departed to the Brazilian embassy in Washington. According to the head of the Brazilian presidency’s Secretariat of Communication, Lécio Portela Delgado, Lula requested a changed in Thursday’s schedule, which had originally called for an initial press conference at the White House between both heads of state before the meeting. No such press conference took place as a result of Lula’s request.
Instead, after the meeting, Lula held a press conference at the Brazilian embassy, during which he affirmed that Cuba was among the subjects he discussed with Trump. The Brazilian president told the press that Trump allegedly told him during the conversation that he had no intention of staging an invasion of Cuba — pointing out that the alleged assertion was relayed to him through an interpreter.
“I heard — though I’m not sure if the translation was accurate — that he said he has no intention of invading Cuba. That’s what the interpreter said, and I think that’s a very positive sign,” Lula said.
Lula, a longtime friend of Cuba’s communist Castro regime, has been a fierce critic of President Trump’s pressure campaign against the ailing Cuban communists and the U.S. “embargo” on Cuba, which leftists allege is the cause of Cuba’s extreme humanitarian crisis and not the 67 years of disastrous communist policies under the Castro regime. In April, speaking alongside German Chancellor Fierdich Merz in Hanover during an official visit, Lula condemned any possible U.S. military action against the Cuban regime and asked for respect for the “self-determination of the people.” He also claimed Cuba is the “victim” of an “ideological blockade” against the ruling communists.
The Brazilian president, who in the past tried to insert himself in negotiations pertaining to the war in Ukraine and in prospective 2025 talks between the U.S. and the Venezuelan socialist regime, claimed to reporters gathered at the Brazilian embassy that he is willing to insert himself in talks between the United States and Cuba over the “embargo” if it is necessary.
“If you need help discussing the situation in Cuba, I’m entirely at your disposal. If the translation was accurate, he said he has no intention of invading Cuba, and I think that’s a very positive sign, especially since Cuba wants to engage in dialogue and find a solution to end a blockade that has never allowed the country to be completely free,” Lula said, per the outlet Poder 360.
“I am available should Brazil need to discuss the issue of U.S. interference in Cuba or Iran with any country. But I came here specifically to discuss Brazilian issues, and I didn’t want to shift the focus,” he added.
According to Lula, he and Trump agreed to have teams from their respective administrations come up with proposals to resolve the diplomatic impasse between the U.S. and Brazil over tariffs and a separate impasse over an ongoing U.S. probe launched in 2025 into unfair trading practices allegedly committed by the Brazilian payment processing services platform Pix in detriment of U.S. trade.
Lula also confirmed on Thursday that he requested the change of agenda at the White House and that he preferred to hold a private meeting with Trump before speaking to the press because, according to him, “it doesn’t make sense” to speak to the press before the meeting, and said, “Neither I nor President Trump need photography. And we don’t need to invent anything for the press.”
“I am leaving Washington with the impression that we have taken an important step toward strengthening the historic democratic relationship between Brazil and the United States. It was a very important meeting with President Donald Trump,” Lula wrote on social media. “Brazil is prepared to discuss any issue with any country in the world: tariffs, foreign trade, critical minerals, and the fight against organized crime and the trafficking of drugs and weapons.”
“We have no veto and no off-limits topics. The only thing we will not compromise on is our democracy and our sovereignty. In the coming days, our ministers will continue negotiations to make progress on the issues we addressed today,” he concluded.
President Trump said in a Thursday Truth Social post that his private meeting with Lula went “very well,” with both heads of state discussing tariffs, trade, and other topics.
Christian K. Caruzo is a Venezuelan writer and documents life under socialism. You can follow him on Twitter here.