Lula: Brazil and South Korea partnership ‘will grow a lot’

On his third visit to South Korea, President Lula states that Brazil and the Asian country have ample opportunities for cooperation and exchange of experiences in strategic areas, such as technological sophistication and the energy transition

The President of the Republic, Luiz Inácio Lula da Silva, highlighted, on his third visit to South Korea, that Brazil and the Asian country have ample opportunities for cooperation and exchange of experiences in strategic areas. During a press statement on the morning of February 24, in Seoul, the president affirmed the mutual potential between the countries.

“We really need to learn from South Korea, such as technological sophistication. And they have many things to learn from us, especially on the issue of energy transition policy, in the discussion of critical minerals, rare earths. I think this partnership will grow a lot”, he said. According to Lula, the complementarity between the two nations creates solid foundations for strengthening the bilateral partnership.

Lula also recalled that, currently, Brazil and South Korea have a trade exchange of US$ 11 billion. South Korea is Brazil’s 4th trading partner in Asia. For the Brazilian president, the relationship should grow even further.

Today we have trade worth US$ 11 billion, which is very little for the size of Brazil and South Korea. We are going to make this number grow. And I think the commercial relationship between Brazil and South Korea will grow a lot”, pointed out the president.

The president was in Seoul, South Korea, at the invitation of President Lee Jae Myung, for a series of engagements. “My coming to South Korea is due to the fact that there is an elected president who has a story very similar to mine. We met for the first time in Canada, chemistry emerged between the two of us, and I said I would go to Korea”, said the president.

This Monday, Lula participated in the closing ceremony of the Brazil-South Korea Business Forum, in Seoul, and signaled the intention of several commercial partnerships with the Asian country. In addition, agreements were signed in areas such as agriculture, technology, medicine production and expansion of cultural and educational exchanges.

Mercosur

During the press statement, Lula also highlighted South Korea’s intention to resume negotiations for a trade agreement between the Asian country and Mercosur. “This agreement has been on hold since 2021. I reminded him (Lee Jae-Myung, president of South Korea) that it was very important, at this time when the return of unilateralism is being discussed, that we discuss this agreement again. He was very interested. We will set up the commissions to start debating and, if everything goes well, we can conclude these agreements this year”, he summarized.

Organized crime

When asked about a possible meeting with the President of the United States, Donald Trump, President Lula highlighted that the agenda is being prepared, and that one of the themes should be the fight against organized crime. “I am preparing a debate on the issue of combating organized crime with Trump. He knows that, when I go to the United States, I will take with me the Federal Police, the Federal Revenue Service, the Ministry of Finance and the Ministry of Justice and Public Security. I will show that if he really wants to combat organized crime, drug trafficking, arms trafficking, Brazil will be an excellent partner, because we have expertise in this with our Federal Police”, he said.

“I have a long agenda with President Trump, which is eminently in the interest of Brazil. There is another that is in the interest of multilateralism. There is another that is in the interest of democracy, and I will talk about that with him. Now, he also has his agenda for me, and I can only wait for the meeting”, Lula pointed out.

Ida in Abu Dhabi

The president now leaves for Abu Dhabi, capital of the United Arab Emirates. On that occasion, Lula will meet with President Mohammed bin Zayed Al Nahyan. “I’m going to discuss the commercial and political relationship between Brazil and the United Arab Emirates. I think we don’t need war, we need peace. We need investment and development, which is what will improve people’s lives”, reinforced the president.

Originally published by Agência Gov on 02/23/2026