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The meeting between Lula and Joe Biden laid bare the points on which the two leaders share common goals, such as the environment and the fight against the far-right … and also those on which they disagree, says @BrazilInst's Bruna Santos (@hourly_radio).

Last Friday, February 10, Brazilian President Luiz Inácio Lula da Silva visited his U.S. counterpart, Joe Biden. 

The meeting laid bare the points on which the two leaders share common goals, such as the environment and the fight against the far-right … and also those on which they disagree — namely, China and the war in Ukraine. 

This week, we talk about what to make of the first meeting between the leaders of the two biggest democracies in the Americas.

 

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This episode used music from Uppbeat. License codes: QW14CXK3NI7SVCBP, KK5XZFX8SAPWEOGV, GML8XG9DPVGEVPIZ.

In this episode:

• Bruna Santos, director of the Wilson Center's Brazil Institute.
• This week's episode is part of the Brazil 100 project, a partnership between The Brazilian Report and the Wilson Center's Brazil Institute aimed at discussing the main challenges the Lula administration will face — and its moves in the first 100 days.

Background reading:

• Meeting Joe Biden helps Lula accomplish two of his goals: re-establishing Brazil as an influential diplomatic world leader and becoming a leading figure in environmental matters, writes the Brazil Institute.
• The outlook for Brazil-U.S. relations is better now than it was under former leader Jair Bolsonaro, but Lula’s brief trip to the U.S. this week laid bare points of discord, writes columnist André Pagliarini.
• In the U.S., Lula met with congressional Democrats and the U.S.'s largest trade federation — an organization that has been allied with Lula for decades. The Brazilian president, however, made no effort to reach out to the other side of the aisle. 
• When Lula left Brazil for the U.S., Vice President Geraldo Alckmin became the country's acting president. Brazilian tradition dictates that there must always be an acting head of government on Brazilian soil. Although seemingly outdated, the rule is here to stay, writes Cedê Silva.
• The Lula-Biden meeting happened as both countries are changing their bilateral diplomatic representation. The U.S. has a new ambassador in Brasília, Elizabeth Bagley, a longtime Democratic Party fundraiser, and Brazil named Maria Luiza Viotti, a career diplomat, to head the embassy in Washington. Ms. Viotti, however, still needs to be confirmed by the Brazilian Senate.

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