The second coming of Lula: Brazil's president in superpower balancing act

We ask about Brazil's Ukraine stance, and about Lula's claim that Brazil is back after four years of the far right’s Jair Bolsonaro. Portugal, the former colonial power, is happy to welcome the return of a leader who was at the helm during Brazil's boom years of the early 2000s… but the world has changed. 

Beyond inflamed superpower tensions, just look at the weather in Lisbon: the current April heatwave follows record winter drought in the Iberian peninsula. With the planet overheating, the EU wants guarantees on protecting the Amazon rainforest before finalising a trade pact with Brazil. Will Lula ultimately side with environmentalists or the agriculture industry?

The world has changed, and so has the 77-year-old Brazilian president. On the day that Joe Biden launched his re-election bid at 80, one wonders whether political veterans roll with those changing times.

Produced by Alessandro Xenos, Imen Mellaz and Aline Bottin. 

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