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Modi, Lula speak on phone amid growing tariff pressure from the US

Global Times

By Global Times Published: Aug 08, 2025 09:12 AM

Indian Prime Minister Narendra Modi and Brazil's President Luiz Inacio Lula da Silva spoke on the phone on Thursday amid growing tariff pressure from the US government.

"We are committed to deepening our Strategic Partnership including in trade, energy, tech, defence, health and more. A strong, people-centric partnership between Global South nations benefits everyone," Modi said in a X post on Friday.

Lula, said in a post on X on Friday, that the two leaders "recalled the important outcomes of the State visit that Prime Minister Modi made to Brazil on July 8, and discussed the international economic scenario and the imposition of unilateral tariffs."

"Brazil and India are, so far, the two most affected countries. We reaffirmed the importance of defending multilateralism and the need to address the challenges of the current situation, as well as to explore possibilities for greater integration between the two countries," Lula said in the post.

In this context, the two sides confirmed a state visit from Brazil to India in early 2026 during the call.

The phone call came after a day after the Brazilian leader told Reuters he would initiate a conversation among the BRICS group of countries on tackling US President Donald Trump's levies, Reuters reported.

Trump on Wednesday announced an additional 25 percent tariff on Indian goods, bringing the total duty to 50 percent. He said the hike, effective on August 28, is intended to punish India for continuing to import Russian oil, per Reuters.

Brazil was also hit with a 50 percent tariff on most goods, and Trump linked the move to what he described as a "witch hunt" against former President Jair Bolsonaro, according to Reuters.

Lula also revealed in the interview with Reuters on Wednesday that he plans to call the leaders of India and China to discuss a joint BRICS response to tariffs on US imports imposed by Trump.

"What President Trump is doing is tacit — he wants to dismantle multilateralism, where agreements are made collectively within institutions, and replace it with unilateralism, where he negotiates one-on-one with other countries," Lula said.

"I'm going to try to discuss with them about how each one is doing in this situation, what the implications are for each country, so we can make a decision," he was quoted as saying in the Reuters' report. "It's important to remember that the BRICS have ten countries at the G20," he added, referring to the group that gathers 20 of the world's biggest economies, Reuters said.

Sending a strong message the day after US President ratcheted up the tariff war against India, Modi stressed that India will never compromise with the interests of its farmers and fishermen, Indian media NDTV reported on Thursday. Modi said that while he knows he will "have to pay the price", he was ready to do it for farmers.

With the total tariffs on Indian exports to the US rising to 50 percent, the Indian Ministry of External Affairs responded that the US targeting India over Russian oil imports is "unfair, unjustified, and unreasonable," NDTV said.