Brazil’s Lula da Silva ‘misinformed’ about war, says Ukrainian embassy

RIO DE JANEIRO, BRAZIL – The Ukrainian Embassy in Brazil said Wednesday (4) that former president and current presidential candidate Luiz Inacio Lula da Silva (PT) was “misinformed” about the reasons for the war in the country.

In an interview with Time magazine, Lula da Silva said that Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky was as responsible for the conflict as Russian President Vladimir Putin.

The leftist politician assessed Zelensky as “a bit strange” and said the president was seeking “war” against Russia. Lula added that the Ukrainian leader seems to be part of a show. “He appears on television in the morning, afternoon and evening,” he said.

Speaking to ‘O Globo’ newspaper, the Ukrainian Embassy said it would request an audience with Lula da Silva and Ukrainian Chargé d’Affaires in Brazil, Anatoliy Tkach, to discuss the Ukrainian government’s stance on the war.

In an interview with Time, Lula da Silva criticized the Bolsonaro government and Presidents Joe Biden (U.S.) and Volodymyr Zelensky (Ukraine).

He commented on racism in Brazil and also said that the UN (United Nations) “no longer represents anything.” Last week he celebrated the opinion of a UN commission that called Sergio Moro “biased” in the trial of the former president.

The Time article speaks of “dramatic arcs” in Lula da Silva’s history. It cites the “hero’s journey” from childhood poverty to involvement in the trade union movement to the presidency. He spoke of a “tragedy” when after his arrest, he was forced to “watch from the sidelines” as “rivals dismantled his legacy.”