WASHINGTON/BRASILIA – US President Donald Trump and Brazilian President Luiz Inacio Lula da Silva discussed trade, the economy and fighting organized crime in a phone call on Dec 2, both sides said.

Speaking to reporters at the White House, Mr Trump said the two men also discussed sanctions - an apparent reference to his administration’s targeting of Brazil’s judiciary over the criminal case of

right-wing former President Jair Bolsonaro

Mr Trump said he and Mr Lula “had a great talk. We talked about trade. We talked about sanctions, because, as you know, I sanctioned them having to do with certain things that took place.”

In a later social media post, Mr Trump said he looked forward to seeing and speaking with Mr Lula soon, adding that “much good will come out of this newly formed partnership!”

Brazil’s presidential palace said in a statement that Mr Lula thanked Mr Trump for his decision to remove additional tariffs on US imports of Brazilian goods including coffee and beef, and added that Brazil seeks to progress on talks about products still affected by the levies.

Mr Trump in November removed the

40 per cent tariffs on several Brazilian food products

During the 40-minute call on Dec 2, which the Brazilian presidential palace called “very productive”, Mr Lula also stressed the urgency of strengthening cooperation with the United States to fight international organised crime, according to its statement.