President Lula & His Government Have Not Negotiated With the US in Good Faith

Today, President Trump directed USTR to impose a 25% tariff on most Brazilian imports. Let there be no confusion about why: President Lula and his government have not negotiated with the US in good faith.

His economic policies are bad for Americans and bad for Brazilians. For…

— Secretary Marco Rubio (@SecRubio) July 16, 2026

… the past year, Lula has put his own ego ahead of making a deal for the welfare of the Brazilian people, and these tariffs are the price for that.

For decades, Brazil’s unreasonable acts, policies, and practices have harmed U.S. commerce, including by unfairly advantaging Brazil’s producers over their American competitors and by restricting access to one of the world’s top export markets. For example:

Illegal… pic.twitter.com/58WX433MO5

— United States Trade Representative (@USTradeRep) July 16, 2026

… Deforestation: Brazil’s deforestation practices make it more difficult for the U.S. logging industry to compete fairly in global markets. A staggering 91% of deforestation in the Amazon was illegal harvesting between 2023 and 2024. Illegally sourced timber products contribute to distorted global prices, resulting in the devaluation of U.S. wood products, with illegally sourced timber estimated to reduce legally sourced timber prices by 7% to 16%.

There is also evidence that some sub-central levels of Brazil’s government are taking steps to eliminate or roll back tax and other public- and private-sector incentives designed to discourage deforestation.

Continue reading for more non-reciprocal, pervasive trade practices.