Brasília, Brazil - Brazilian President Luiz Inacio Lula da Silva said on Tuesday that the US had revoked the visa of Justice Minister Ricardo Lewandowski, a move he termed "irresponsible."

The US State Department had yet to confirm the latest in a series of punitive measures taken by Washington against Brazil for putting former far-right president Jair Bolsonaro on trial for alleged coup plotting.

"I wanted to express my solidarity and the government's solidarity with my colleague Lewandowski faced with the irresponsible gesture of the United States in revoking his visa," Lula told a ministerial meeting in Brasília.

President Donald Trump has also imposed crippling 50% tariffs on dozens of Brazilian imports and sanctioned the judge overseeing Bolsonaro's trial, which the US leader has called a "witch hunt."

North Korea North Korea test-fires air defense missiles with "superior combat capability"

China China accuses Trump admin of "rampant" protectionism amid agriculture scuffles

Bolsonaro, dubbed the "Trump of the Tropics" during his 2019-2022 presidency, risks up to 40 years in prison if convicted of plotting to cling onto power after losing the October 2022 elections to the leftist Lula.

He denies the charges and claims his trial is an attempt by the Brazilian judiciary, in league with Lula's government, to prevent him making a comeback in 2026 elections.

He is under house arrest while awaiting the verdict, which the Supreme Court is expected to deliver early next month.