Brazilian President Luiz Inácio Lula da Silva issued a strong rebuke to the Trump administration’s recent sanctions targeting eight justices of Brazil’s Supreme Federal Court (STF), calling the move a violation of fundamental principles of respect and national sovereignty.
In a statement released on Saturday, July 19, Lula denounced Washington’s decision to impose visa restrictions on judges involved in the trial of former president Jair Bolsonaro over alleged coup attempts. “No form of intimidation or threat, from whoever it may be, will compromise the essential mission of our institutions: to defend and preserve the Democratic Rule of Law,” Lula declared.
The Brazilian leader emphasized that foreign interference in a country’s judicial affairs is “unacceptable” and an affront to the core values that govern international relations.
Lula’s remarks come amid rising diplomatic tensions between the United States and Brazil. On Friday, Minister of Institutional Relations Gleisi Hoffmann confirmed that former U.S. President Donald Trump had sanctioned Supreme Court Justice Alexandre de Moraes—who is overseeing Bolsonaro’s case—along with his family and seven other STF justices: Luis Roberto Barroso, Dias Toffoli, Cristiano Zanin, Flavio Dino, Carmen Lúcia, Edson Fachin, and Gilmar Mendes.
Brazil’s Attorney General Paulo Gonet was also targeted, according to Jorge Messias, the Prosecutor General of the Republic. In a message posted on social media platform X (formerly Twitter), Messias warned that Brazil’s judiciary would not be intimidated by “improper maneuvers” or “sordid conspiratorial acts,” and denounced the move as an “arbitrary revocation” of visas targeting officials fulfilling their constitutional duties.
The sanctions were announced shortly after Justice de Moraes imposed a series of precautionary measures on Bolsonaro, including the use of an electronic ankle monitor and a nighttime and weekend house arrest. The measures are part of an investigation into Bolsonaro’s alleged efforts, alongside his son and lawmaker Eduardo Bolsonaro, to pressure the U.S. government to impose sanctions on Brazil.
From the White House, Trump has condemned the case against Bolsonaro as a “witch hunt,” a term he often uses to describe his own legal battles. Last week, Trump also announced a 50% tariff on Brazilian imports, linking the trade measure to his disapproval of the ongoing trial against the far-right former president.
Bolsonaro is facing charges of conspiracy to commit a coup before Brazil’s Supreme Court, accused of trying to prevent Lula from taking office in January 2023 following his defeat in the October 2022 elections. While he denies leading a coup attempt, Bolsonaro has acknowledged participating in meetings aimed at overturning the election results.
According to Brazil’s Attorney General’s Office, the anti-democratic plot began shortly after Bolsonaro’s electoral loss and culminated in the January 8, 2023 attack on government buildings, when thousands of far-right supporters stormed the seats of the three branches of government, urging the military to overthrow the newly sworn-in administration.
The Supreme Court has already received the prosecution’s final arguments and given the defense a deadline to submit their closing statements. The oral trial is set to begin in the coming months, with verdicts expected between September and October.
