logo
Exclusive: Defiant Bolsonaro says he is the one to stop Lula, China and Trump tariffs

Exclusive: Defiant Bolsonaro says he is the one to stop Lula, China and Trump tariffs

Reutersa day ago
BRASILIA, July 18 (Reuters) - With dark jeans pulled over an ankle monitor attached just hours earlier, Brazil's right-wing former President Jair Bolsonaro made clear on Friday that the humiliation of court-ordered restraints would not curb his role in global politics.
In a defiant interview with Reuters at his party's offices, raided at dawn in the latest crackdown from the Supreme Court, Bolsonaro cast himself as the man to renegotiate U.S. tariffs, curb Chinese influence and beat back leftists in Brazil.
"They want to get me out of the political game next year," he said, referring to an election in which President Luiz Inacio Lula da Silva is set to seek a fourth term. "Without me in the race, Lula could beat anyone."
Even after Brazil's Supreme Court barred him on Friday from contact with foreign officials, the ex-president insisted he wants to meet with U.S. President Donald Trump, who slapped a 50% tariff on Brazilian goods last week and demanded an end to Bolsonaro's trial for trying to overturn the last election.
While some allies worry Trump's tactic is backfiring, tying Bolsonaro to the economic fallout and rallying support behind Lula, the ex-president remained supportive of his ally in the White House.
"I would never give advice to Trump. Who am I? I respect him," said Bolsonaro, seated at a table with two volumes within reach: a copy of the Brazilian constitution and a magazine with Trump on the cover. "His country is an example for us. We're not an example for them."
In court orders on Friday, based on allegations that Bolsonaro had courted Trump's intervention in legal matters, Supreme Court Justice Alexandre de Moraes slapped the ex-president with a curfew and ankle monitor and banned him from using social media, approaching foreign embassies or dealing with foreign officials.
Bolsonaro called Moraes a "dictator" and described the latest court orders as acts of "cowardice."
"I feel supreme humiliation," he said, when asked how it felt to wear the ankle monitor. "I am 70 years old, I was president of the republic for four years."
Bolsonaro denied any plans to leave the country, but said he would meet with Trump if he could get back his passport, which police seized last year. He also said he wanted to discuss Trump's tariff threat with the top U.S. diplomat in Brazil.
Trump has praised Bolsonaro, but told journalists this week that he is "not like a friend." When pressed for details of their relationship, the Brazilian former army captain began describing the advance of Chinese interests in Latin America.
"China is taking over Brazil. Many see that in Brazil I am the person who can stop China, as long as I have a warlike, nuclear nation behind me. Which one? Up north," he said.
He said the BRICS bloc of developing nations, formed originally by Brazil, Russia, India and China, had become a "brotherhood of dictatorships and war criminals."
While hosting the BRICS summit in Rio de Janeiro this month, Lula compared Trump to an unwanted "emperor," drawing the ire of the U.S. president, who threatened to raise tariffs on the group for its "anti-American policies."
Orange background

Try Our AI Features

Explore what Daily8 AI can do for you:

Comments

No comments yet...

Related Articles

Japan heads to polls in key test for Prime Minister Ishiba
Japan heads to polls in key test for Prime Minister Ishiba

Reuters

time20 minutes ago

  • Reuters

Japan heads to polls in key test for Prime Minister Ishiba

TOKYO, July 20 (Reuters) - Japanese voters could unleash political turmoil as they head to the polls on Sunday in a tightly contested upper house election, with rising prices and immigration concerns threatening to weaken Prime Minister Shigeru Ishiba's grip on power. Opinion polls suggest Ishiba's Liberal Democratic Party and coalition partner Komeito may fall short of the 50 seats needed to retain control of the 248-seat upper house of parliament in an election where half the seats are up for grabs. The polls show smaller opposition parties pushing for tax cuts and increased public spending are set to gain, among them the right-wing Sanseito, which vows to curb immigration, oppose foreign capital inflows and reverse gender equality moves. A poor showing by the coalition could shake investor confidence in the world's fourth-largest economy and disrupt critical trade talks with the United States, analysts said. Ishiba may have to choose between making way for a new LDP leader or scrambling to secure the backing of some opposition parties with policy compromises, said Rintaro Nishimura, an associate at the Asia Group in Japan. "Each scenario requires the LDP and Komeito to make certain concessions, and will be challenging, as any potential partner has leverage in the negotiations." After the election, Japan faces a deadline of August 1 to strike a trade deal with the United States or face punishing tariffs in its largest export market. Such import levies could squeeze the economy and further pressure the government to give financial relief to households already reeling from inflation, such as a doubling of rice prices since last year. With an eye on a jittery government bond market, the LDP has called for fiscal restraint, rejecting opposition calls for major tax cuts and welfare spending to soften the blow. Ishiba's administration lost its majority in the more powerful lower house in October. That was the LDP's worst showing in 15 years, roiling financial markets and leaving the prime minister vulnerable to no-confidence motions that could topple his administration and trigger a fresh general election. Ruled by the LDP for most of the post-war period, Japan has so far largely avoided the social division and fracturing of politics seen in other industrialised democracies. Voting ends at 8 p.m. (1100 GMT), when media are expected to project results based on exit polls.

Paul Biya: 92-year-old president struggles to woo young Cameroonians on social media
Paul Biya: 92-year-old president struggles to woo young Cameroonians on social media

BBC News

timean hour ago

  • BBC News

Paul Biya: 92-year-old president struggles to woo young Cameroonians on social media

Even before the world's oldest president confirmed that he would run for an eighth term in power, his social media accounts left experts in no the time 92-year-old Paul Biya officially confirmed he would seek re-election as Cameroon's president last week, he had already been ramping up his online presence for several posts on Facebook and X (formerly Twitter) mark a striking departure from his previous, occasional Biya's attempts to win over young people ahead of October's election may be falling flat, analysts tell the BBC. "Cameroon has over 5.4 million social media users, but 95% of young people rely on WhatsApp - a platform where presidential communication is nearly non-existent," says Rostant Tane, the director of Media Intelligence Sarl and author of the Cameroon 2024 Multimedia Audience Study."There's no regional segmentation, no interactivity, and very little effort to speak the digital language of young people," he stumbling block is authenticity."Many know that it is not Paul Biya himself who is writing - which creates distance and limits trust," says Hervé Tiwa, a lecturer in communication sciences."Their communication remains very top-down without any real interaction - comments ignored or deleted, a lack of personalised responses... This gives the impression of a strategy that is more cosmetic than participatory."Why does this matter? Cameroon's population is overwhelmingly young. Over 60% of the population is under 25, with more than half the electorate being under the age of 30, meaning they could potentially decide the outcome of the election."Political communication must serve democracy and transparency, and not just be used as a marketing tool," says 27-year-old communications specialist Ulrich people want to see concrete action on issues that affect them, agrees Falone Ngu, who is also 27."Cameroon's youth are not just looking for flashy graphics or slogans on the media! They want opportunities, change and hope," says the social enterprise founder, who did reserve some praise for the president's social media team for realising that "leadership and digitalisation go hand in hand". Unemployment is high in Cameroon, with even the most qualified young people in possession of multiple university degrees struggling to find work. Corruption and security are also key instead of focusing on those issues, many posts on Biya's social media accounts emphasise his track record during 43 years in power - a time before much of the population was even to communication strategist Aristide Mabatto, Biya's team is now publishing excerpts in French and English from more than 300 speeches the president has delivered over the recent, pointed example drew on a speech from 2000, chiding people who lecture others but fail to preach by example. That was posted just two days after one of Biya's longest-standing allies criticised his rule and abandoned him. This somewhat staid approach does not appear to have ignited much enthusiasm, but is still an improvement on what went before."His communication used to be limited to official decrees and state addresses. The shift to frequent digital messaging shows a deliberate effort to reclaim the narrative and appear more present," argues absence from the public for more than six weeks last year had led to speculation about his wellbeing and unfounded rumours that he had have praised these latest efforts, with state media like Cameroon Tribune highlighting Biya's digital outreach as a sign of vitality and scepticism and sarcasm are in greater evidence online. Comments below recent posts on Paul Biya's X and Facebook accounts include:"It looks like he's discovering the internet in 2025, but it's primarily an electoral market test," says a user called Cynthia."Finally he's talking to young people!", comments Jean-Pierre."Cameroonians want roads, not hashtags," writes a user called Mireille."Personally, I'm not at all convinced," 32-year-old entrepreneur Che Arnold tells the BBC of the Biya camp's strategy to appeal to young voters."It needs to go beyond tweets, Facebook messages and a simple online presence to promote political reforms but also solve real social problems."Biya will have to wait until the election in October to see if these efforts will translate into more young people voting for and additional reporting by Natasha Booty You may also be interested in: Biya's daughter hopes coming out as a lesbian will change anti-gay lawsUS cuts visa validity for people from Cameroon and three other African nations'Nowhere is safe' - Cameroonians trapped between separatists and soldiers Go to for more news from the African us on Twitter @BBCAfrica, on Facebook at BBC Africa or on Instagram at bbcafrica

Mary Lou McDonald or Catherine Connolly for president? Sinn Fein can't decide
Mary Lou McDonald or Catherine Connolly for president? Sinn Fein can't decide

Times

time2 hours ago

  • Times

Mary Lou McDonald or Catherine Connolly for president? Sinn Fein can't decide

Sinn Fein members are split over whether the party should put its leader, Mary Lou McDonald, forward as a presidential candidate in the forthcoming election. The Sinn Fein ard comhairle, which is the party's governing body, is expected to discuss presidential plans at a meeting this month, but senior figures­ believe the majority of members favour backing a candidate of the left rather than McDonald. While the majority of Sinn Fein TDs who spoke to The Sunday Times said they believed backing a candidate of the left was the most likely outcome, there was a significant minority who felt McDonald should put her name forward. Party sources believe if the preferences of the parliamentary party were ­tallied, there would be a 65 per cent to 35 per cent split in favour of backing a candidate agreed by the left, such as Catherine Connolly, the left-wing independent who formally launched her campaign last week. Others believed it would be closer to 60 per cent against McDonald running, and 40 per cent in favour of it. 'There is a split there on the wider question of whether we should run our own candidate or not. There are a lot of people within the parliamentary party who think we should support Catherine Connolly,' a Sinn Fein source said. 'Having said that, the argument is being made that from the perspective of what we are trying to achieve, a united Ireland, this would be a great opportunity to further that, and that we would be mad not to take it.' The senior party member said Connolly was a good choice because of her track record on social issues and pointed to her opposition to the family and care referendums. 'She was bang on when she expressed her concerns and we were really caught out there,' the source said. • Irish presidential election candidates 2025 — who is up for it? 'We are also trying to make an argument to the electorate that there is a bloc there on the left, among the opposition, who could work together and form a government­ after the next general election, and backing Catherine would really help that argument.' A second source said some TDs argued McDonald would make a formidable candidate. 'If we were to run someone, realistically it would have to be Michelle O'Neill [the Stormont first minister] or Mary Lou,' they said. 'If Mary Lou ran, she would wipe the floor in debates and sweep up votes across the board. It would be a good moment for the party.' Among the grassroots of the party, however, there are sharper opinions. One local rural party member said they believed there was 'no way' McDonald would run and that the conversation was not one grounded in reality. Another grassroots member said that in the course of the party's internal consultations on the presidency, it was never once suggested that McDonald could be the party's candidate and that the debate had been started by the media. Although members of the ard comhairle are expected to discuss the plans at the end of this month, it is likely Sinn Fein will wait until August to announce its intentions. Connolly, the independent Galway West TD, formally announced her candidacy last week and said she would welcome the backing of Sinn Fein. She said she believed a united Ireland was on the cards 'soon' in comments widely viewed as an attempt to woo Sinn Fein. Connolly also made a presentation to the Labour Party last week in an effort to win the support of its TDs. Labour is planning to launch a consultative process with its membership before coming to a final position. Fine Gael has nominated Mairead McGuinness, the former European commissioner, as its candidate. Her name will officially be put forward for ­ratification at an event in September, and this will mark the start of her presidential election campaign. 'Subject to my candidacy being ratified by the party in early September, I very much look forward to setting out my vision,' McGuinness said.

DOWNLOAD THE APP

Get Started Now: Download the App

Ready to dive into a world of global content with local flavor? Download Daily8 app today from your preferred app store and start exploring.
app-storeplay-store