Brazil criticizes ‘weaponization’ of the US dollar

The Brazilian Finance Minister Fernando Haddad has expressed sharp criticism of the use of the US dollar as a geopolitics instrument by the United States. According to him, this so -called “weaponization” undermines the status of the currency as a global reserve currency. In addition, Haddad announced that Brazil will legally challenge the new American tariff regime of 50 percent on Brazilian exports.

Criticism of the role of the dollar

In a television interview, Haddad acknowledged that the dollar remains the dominant reserve currency for the time being, but he warned that this can change if the United States continues to make mistakes. In addition, he pointed to the rising budget deficit and the use of the coin as a means of pressure in geopolitical conflicts.

“Another point is the idea of ​​turning the dollar into a war weapon, as we saw against Russia. That is what the coin weakens,” said Haddad.

He emphasized that the US cannot prevent countries from doing bilateral trade in their own currency. According to the minister, it makes sense that countries look for alternatives if that makes transactions cheaper.

“That makes no sense. If we can make our transactions cheaper, why would we make them more expensive?” he added.

This is already happening a lot with bilateral trade between, for example, Brics countries. For example, the internal trade in local currency within the BRICS block grows considerably. Especially the Chinese Yuan, Russian rubles and Brazilian Real are increasingly being used for bilateral trade.

Legal resistance to import tariffs

In addition to his criticism of the dollar, Haddad discussed the new American import duties. President Donald Trump introduced a rate increase of 50 percent this month on certain Brazilian products. The measure was justified by Trump with references to the alleged political persecution of former president Jair Bolsonaro and the actions of the Brazilian judiciary against American social media companies.

The Brazilian government announced that it will not accept the rates without a defense. A legal team has since been put together to bring the case to court. In addition, Brazil had previously established countermeasures to limit the economic impact of the American decision.