Brazil’s Lula backs China peace push at UN, tells US his nation is ‘no one’s backyard’

Brazilian President Luiz Inacio Lula da Silva renewed his backing on Tuesday for a peace initiative he launched with China to end the Ukraine" class="entity-link entity-event" data-entity-id="142386" data-entity-type="event">war in Ukraine, using his opening speech at the UN General Assembly to take thinly veiled aim at the United States over tariffs, military pressure and access to critical minerals.Speaking in New York just days before Brazilians vote in a tight presidential race, Lula described the war between Russia and Ukraine as a five-year humanitarian drama that “continues to claim lives”.There will be “no winners on the battlefield” and “diplomacy is the only option”, he told the assembly, pointing to “the Group of Friends for Peace, created by Brazil and China”, as proof that “there are forces in the international community willing to work for dialogue”.Beijing and Brasilia launched the group at the UN in September 2024, gathering representatives from 17 developing countries behind a call for a negotiated settlement. China received no criticism in the address.Lula framed the appeal within a wider indictment of the UN, telling delegates its credibility had “never been so low” and that members were “hostages to the immobility of a Security Council that does not fulfil its role”.“War is not the continuation of politics by other means. It is the total bankruptcy of politics,” he said.During his speech before the UN General Assembly, Brazilian President Luiz Inacio Lula da Silva backed a China-Brazil peace initiative for Ukraine. Photo: AFPCriticism of US foreign policyThe United States was not named during the speech but was the clear target of several passages.In one, Lula described the proximity of Latin America and the Caribbean to “the world’s greatest military power” as inescapable, “especially in a context of resurgent hegemonic temptations”.