After months of political acrimony, Brazilian President Lula da Silva spoke with US President Donald Trump for 30 minutes in a “friendly tone", where the former reportedly requested the removal of steep tariffs imposed on Brazilian products and sanctions against Brazilian officials.

This marks the first-ever official talks between Trump and Lula after ties between Brazil and the United States were strained when the US president imposed a 50% tariff on Brazilian imports and sanctions against several top officials to punish Brazil for a “witch hunt" against his far-right ally and former Brazilian president Jair Bolsonaro.

The phone call came after what first appeared to be a chance encounter on the sidelines of the UN General Assembly last month that led Trump to hail his “excellent chemis

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