Brazilian President Lula confirms India visit next month

BRAZILIAN President Luiz Inacio Lula da Silva has confirmed that he will make an official visit to India in February, after which he will travel to Washington to meet US President Donald Trump.

Lula said in a post on X that he spoke to President Trump by telephone and the two leaders agreed on a meeting in Washington after he visits India and South Korea in February, with dates to be finalised soon.

Earlier this month, Prime Minister Narendra Modi received a telephone call from the Brazilian President, and the two leaders reaffirmed their commitment to further strengthen the India-Brazil Strategic Partnership and take it to even greater heights in the year ahead.

In a statement, the External Affairs Ministry said that the two leaders had noted with satisfaction the significant progress achieved across diverse areas of bilateral cooperation, including trade and investment, technology, defence, energy, health, agriculture, and people-to-people ties.

The leaders also exchanged views on regional and global issues of mutual interest. They also underscored the importance of reformed multilateralism in addressing shared challenges. Prime Minister Modi conveyed that he looked forward to welcoming President Lula to India at an early date.

PM Modi visited Brazil in July last year. The two leaders discussed cooperation in the areas of trade and investment, defence and security, health and pharmaceuticals, space, renewable energy, agriculture and food processing, energy security, infrastructure development, digital public infrastructure and UPI, traditional medicine, yoga, sporting links, culture and people-to-people ties.

They discussed strengthening bilateral trade, including the expansion of the India-MERCOSUR Preferential Trade Agreement. The leaders set a target to increase bilateral trade to $20 billion over the next five years.

Taking stock of the ongoing cooperation in the energy sector, the two leaders agreed to explore investment opportunities, as there exists immense potential in the hydrocarbon and renewable energy sectors in both countries.

They also explored avenues for collaboration in the new areas of cooperation, such as critical minerals, new and emerging technologies, AI and supercomputers, digital collaboration and mobility.

Besides, the Prime Minister thanked Brazil for its solidarity and support extended to India in the aftermath of the barbaric terrorist attack in Pahalgam in April 2025.