It was with high significance that President of Brazil Luiz Inácio Lula da Silva initiated a call with Indian Prime Minister Modi on Thursday; it was the day following the US instituted massive 50% tariffs on economic exports from both countries. The call took over one hour with discussions focusing on where damage may happen due to these unilateral tariffs and how to create a path forward by deepening economic strategic cooperation.
Both the President and the Prime Minister confirmed that a shared strategic partnership and cooperation could see growth in trade, energy, technology, defence, agriculture, health and the movement of the people. This is a considerable re-visit after Modi recently visited Brazil and created deeper engagement between two of the major economies of the Global South.
In addition, Lula noted that in early 2026 he would be undertaking a state visit to India, which suggested that the diplomatic relationship was not collapsing despite Washington pressures.
