Mauro Vieira talks to Marco Rubio about trade and security
The Minister of Foreign Affairs, Mauro Vieira, called the Secretary of the United States (USA), Marco Rubio, this Saturday. According to a brief note from Itamaraty, the two discussed issues on the bilateral agenda, trade and cooperation in the area of security.
Another topic of conversation was the preparation of President Lula’s future trip to Washington, which has not yet been set.
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Earlier this week, Lula had a long conversation with US President Donald Trump. According to Palácio do Planalto, the two presidents discussed topics related to the bilateral relationship and the global agenda.
Opportunity with security!
Lula said this week that the trip will take place in March and that he wants to speak with Trump “eye to eye” about the relationship between the two countries.
The relationship between Brazil and the USA faced a period of deterioration, following public criticism by the American government of decisions by the Brazilian Judiciary, the imposition of tariffs on national products and debates about individual sanctions on the country’s authorities.
But in recent weeks, the Brazilian government began to act to reestablish direct channels of dialogue with the new US diplomatic team, in an attempt to reduce political noise and unlock economic negotiations.
In the commercial field, Brazil has been pushing for the review of surcharges applied to Brazilian exports and the resumption of technical agendas that were suspended throughout 2025.
Government interlocutors assess that the reopening of dialogue with the State Department is a necessary condition for progress on sensitive issues, such as tariff barriers, market access and industrial cooperation, especially in strategic sectors.
The mention of security cooperation also reflects an effort to rapprochement in traditionally sensitive areas of the bilateral relationship, such as combating transnational crime, controlling illicit financial flows and regional cooperation.
The topic gained additional weight given the US interest in expanding partnerships in the Western Hemisphere and Brazil’s effort to maintain diplomatic leadership without automatically aligning itself with Washington.
The contact between Vieira and Rubio is seen at Itamaraty as part of a strategy of institutional normalization of the relationship, after months in which the dialogue was concentrated on episodes of crisis and exchanges of public messages.
The expectation is that the dialogue between foreign ministers will serve as a basis for technical meetings and, subsequently, for a resumption of high-level agendas between the two governments.
