US president Donald Trump said on Sunday he is willing to resolve the trade war with Brazil, following a meeting with Brazilian president Luiz Inacio Lula da Silva in Kuala Lumpur, Malaysia.
Officials from both countries will meet "immediately to advance in the search for solutions to the tariffs and sanctions against Brazilian authorities," Lula said via a social media post after the meeting.
Trump and Lula met on the sidelines of the Association of Southeast Asian Nations forum. True to his style, Trump kicked off the meeting in the presence of reporters, with comments offering his support for former president Jair Bolsonaro. Lula eventually erupted, complaining that the impromptu press gaggle was wasting the presidents' time. "The media don't even have to take that long time," Trump said in response.
Bolsonaro featured prominently in Trump's decision to impose a 50pc tariff on US imports from Brazil. Trump mentioned Bolsonaro's ongoing trial on allegations of plotting a coup as a reason for the tariffs on Brazilian products, calling the trial a "witch hunt".
Addressing Lula in the presence of reporters, Trump said, "We'll be able to do some pretty good deals, we've been speaking, and I think we'll end up having a very good relationship."

