WASHINGTON, July 10, (AP): US President Donald Trump singled out Brazil for import taxes of 50% on Wednesday for its treatment of its former president, Jair Bolsonaro, showing that personal grudges rather than simple economics are a driving force in the U.S. leader's use of tariffs. Trump avoided his standard form letter with Brazil, specifically tying his tariffs to the trial of Bolsonaro, who is charged with trying to overturn his 2022 election loss.

Trump has described Bolsonaro as a friend and hosted the former Brazilian president at his Mar-a-Lago resort when both were in power in 2020. "This Trial should not be taking place,” Trump wrote in the letter posted on Truth Social. "It is a Witch Hunt that should end IMMEDIATELY!” There is a sense of kinship as Trump was indicted in 2023 for his efforts to overturn the results of the 2020 US presidential election.

The US president addressed his tariff letter to Brazilian President Luiz Inacio Lula da Silva, who bested Bolsonaro in 2022. Lula responded in a forceful statement that said Trump's tariffs would trigger the country's economic reciprocity law, which allows trade, investment and intellectual property agreements to be suspended against countries that harm Brazil's competitiveness.

He noted that the US has had a trade surplus of more than $410 billion with Brazil over the past 15 years. "Brazil is a sovereign country with independent institutions that will not accept being taken for granted by anyone,” Lula said. Bolsonaro testified before the country’s Supreme Court in June over the alleged plot to remain in power after his 2022 election loss.

Judges will hear from 26 other defendants in the coming months, and legal analysts say a decision could come as early as September. The country’s electoral authorities have already barred Bolsonaro from running for office until 2030. The former president did not comment about Trump’s tariff decision on his social media channels, but wrote that he is being politically persecuted.