Brazil's president, Luiz Inácio Lula da Silva, has defended the trial which saw his predecessor in office, Jair Bolsonaro, sentenced to more than 27 years in prison for plotting a coup.
In an opinion piece published in the New York Times, Lula dismissed the description by US President Donald Trump of the trial as a witch hunt, saying that it was a historic decision which safeguard's our institutions and the democratic rule of law.
The Brazilian leader said he had written the essay to establish an open and frank dialogue with US President Donald Trump, who has imposed 50% tariffs on Brazilian imports.
Lula called the tariff hike not only misguided but illogical.
Relations have been tense between the US and Brazil in recent months, in stark contrast to the times when Trump's counterpart in Brazil was Jair Bolsonaro.
Bolsonaro often expressed his admiration for Trump, who hosted him at his Mar-a Lago resort in 2020.
Lula, a left-wing leader, did not mince his words in his New York Times editorial.
He stated that over the past 15 years the US had accumulated a surplus of $410bn (£302bn) in bilateral trade in goods and services, adding the decision to impose the tariffs could only be political.
The US government is using tariffs and the Magnitsky Act to seek impunity for former President Jair Bolsonaro, Lula wrote, referring to sanctions imposed by the US on the Supreme Court justice who led the trial against Bolsonaro.
The trial concluded when four out of the five Supreme Court justices found Bolsonaro guilty of all charges he faced, resulting in a sentence of 27 years and 3 months in prison—a sentence his lawyers plan to appeal.
Trump found the verdict very surprising while US Secretary of State Marco Rubio announced that the US would respond accordingly to this witch hunt.
In his article, Lula insisted the trial was not a 'witch hunt'. He emphasized that the judgment followed processes set out in Brazil's 1988 Constitution, enacted after a struggle against military dictatorship.
Lula also dismissed accusations from Trump that Brazil's justice system targeted US tech firms, stating that his country's courts were right to regulate the internet and that US firms were not unfairly treated.
In conclusion, he addressed Trump directly, stating Brazil remains open to negotiations but warned that Brazil's democracy and sovereignty are not on the table.
