Are Trump and Brazilian President Lula planning talks in Washington?

Brasília, Brazil - Brazilian President Luiz Inacio Lula da Silva may meet with his US counterpart Donald Trump in Washington on Thursday, a source in the Brazilian presidency told AFP.

Brazilian sources say President Luiz Inacio Lula da Silva (r.) is eyeing a meeting with US President Donald Trump this week.   © Collage: REUTERS & EVARISTO SA / AFP

The two leaders, who have a history of rocky relations, have met only once before, in Malaysia last year.

A second meeting planned in Washington earlier this year did not take place.

Trump says he exercises for "one minute a day max" as he pushes fitness test for kids
Donald Trump Trump says he exercises for "one minute a day max" as he pushes fitness test for kids

"The president's meeting with Trump for Thursday is well underway. It is a possibility, it is not confirmed. But it is on track," a source within the presidency told AFP on Tuesday.

The planned encounter has been widely reported in Brazilian media.

The White House did not immediately respond to AFP's requests for confirmation of the meeting.

Lula (80) and Trump (79) stand on polar opposite sides on issues such as multilateralism, international trade, and the fight against climate change.

Relations had thawed after the Malaysia meeting between the leaders, which led to the lifting of punitive tariffs imposed by Washington on Brazil.

But Lula has been outspoken against Trump's government, from its ouster of former president Nicolás Maduro in Venezuela to the war in Iran.

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Trump is a key ally of imprisoned former far-right president Jair Bolsonaro, whose eldest son, Flavio, is seen as Lula's main rival in an October presidential election.