BRAZILIAN President Luiz Inacio Lula da Silva has blasted a 50 per cent tariff imposed by the United States on goods imported from his country, branding it “political” and “illogical.”

In a New York Times comment article, Lula said that his government was open to negotiating anything that can bring mutual benefits, but he added: “But Brazil’s democracy and sovereignty are not on the table.”

US President Donald Trump imposed the tariff on Brazil in July, citing what he called a “witch-hunt” against former president Jair Bolsonaro, who stood accused of trying to illegally retain power after his election defeat in 2022.

Mr Bolsonaro’s trial ended on Thursday with a panel of Supreme Court judges ruling that he had attempted a coup.

Lula wrote that he was proud of the Supreme Court for its “historic decision,” which safeguards Brazil’s institutions and the democratic rule of law and is not a “witch-hunt.”

“[The ruling] followed months of investigations that uncovered plans to assassinate me, the vice-president and a Supreme Court justice,” the Brazilian president said.

He added that the tariff increase was “not only misguided but illogical,” citing a bilateral trade surplus of $410 billion (£301bn) in goods and services that the US has accumulated over the past 15 years.

After Thursday’s ruling, US Secretary of State Marco Rubio appeared to threaten more sanctions, posting on X that the Trump administration would “respond accordingly.”

Brazil’s Foreign Ministry called Mr Rubio’s comments an inappropriate threat that would not intimidate the government, saying the country’s judiciary was independent and that Mr Bolsonaro had received due process.

On Sunday, the former president briefly left his home in Brasilia, where he is under house arrest, to travel under police escort to a nearby hospital for a medical procedure related to skin lesions.

Supporters greeted him as he arrived at the hospital with shouts of “amnesty now!”

Thursday’s sentence does not mean that Mr Bolsonaro will be jailed immediately. The court panel has now up to 60 days to publish the ruling. Once it does, his lawyers have five days to file motions for clarification.

His legal team have vowed to try to appeal against both the conviction and sentence before the full 11-member Supreme Court.