Lula, Trump discuss tariffs in phone call, Brazil says

BRASILIA, Aug 21 (Reuters) - ‌Brazil's President Luiz ​Inacio ​Lula da Silva and U.S. President Donald Trump spoke by phone on Friday and discussed ‌tariffs Washington recently imposed on Brazilian goods, according ⁠to a statement from Brazil's government.

During the call, Lula reiterated that ‌negotiations are the best ‌way to resolve the dispute, while Trump suggested that officials from both countries meet as soon as ​possible, the statement said.

The U.S. government announced 25% tariffs last month on some Brazilian goods, alleging unfair ⁠trade practices, as well as 12.5% tariffs on goods from dozens of ​nations, including Brazil, linked to allegations of lax enforcement of forced labor bans.

Lula said in ​the statement that the tariffs ‌would harm both economies and that the allegations cited by Washington to justify the ⁠measures, including concerns over deforestation, intellectual property, corruption, Brazil's Pix instant payment system, ethanol and imports allegedly tied to forced ⁠labor, were unfounded.

Earlier this month, Brazil started a process seeking further ​consultations with U.S. trade authorities, a move that could lead to measures against Washington.

Lula reiterated in the call Brazil's interest in ‌cooperating with the U.S. to combat organized crime, but said criminal gangs operating ‌in Brazil should not be equated with terrorist organizations, ⁠the label Washington applied ‌to two of them ​in May.

(Reporting by Lisandra Paraguassu; Writing by Isabel Teles, Editing by Franklin Paul and Rod ‌Nickel)

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