MercoPress. South Atlantic News Agency

Lula pledges defense spending so no one invades Brazil as he confirms his candidacy

He said he wants to be prepared so that no one invades the country to take away its president, as has happened elsewhere, adding that he wants to be prepared for peace, not for war

Brazilian President Luiz Inácio Lula da Silva pledged on Sunday to increase defense investment if he wins October's elections, as his re-election bid was formalized at the Workers' Party national convention held at the Expo Center Norte in São Paulo.

He said he wants to be prepared so that no one invades the country to take away its president, as has happened elsewhere, adding that he wants to be prepared for peace, not for war. The remark was an apparent reference to the capture of Nicolás Maduro by US special forces on January 3 in Caracas, though he did not name him.

Lula urged left-wing supporters to stop treating defense as a minor matter and cited the strengthening of military industries in the United Kingdom, Germany and Japan. He acknowledged reservations among part of the electorate stemming from the 1964-1985 military dictatorship, but argued the country must protect its more than 213 million inhabitants, 8.5 million square kilometers of territory and over 8,000 kilometers of coastline amid international instability. He had previously criticized NATO's increases in military spending.

The president also said he would address the exploitation of rare earths and critical minerals, and stated he would not allow interference from either China or the United States on the matter. He argued Brazil should use its own technological capacity to extract and process them, describing them as national patrimony. International estimates place the country among the world's largest holders of reserves, largely unexplored, behind China.

The convention proclaimed the ticket of Lula and Geraldo Alckmin, whose vice-presidential candidacy had been ratified days earlier by the PSB. The coalition brings together seven parties: PT, PSB, PSOL, Rede, PV, PCdoB and PDT. Party president Edinho Silva formalized the announcement.

The event was restrained in tone, with brief speeches designed for circulation on social media. Before speaking, Lula criticized the absence of women from the program and handed the microphone to First Lady Rosângela Lula da Silva, who promotes the national plan against femicide. Alckmin and São Paulo gubernatorial candidate Fernando Haddad also spoke.

At 80, Lula avoided direct references to his rivals and said his is the only candidacy that will not need to resort to lies during the campaign. He also made no mention of Donald Trump, whose tariff offensive has dominated the agenda in recent weeks, apart from one passing joke.

The formal campaign launch is scheduled for August 16 at the Vila Euclides stadium in São Bernardo do Campo. Polls give Lula a lead over Senator Flávio Bolsonaro, the main opposition candidate. On Thursday, the Supreme Federal Court authorized an investigation into the president's eldest son over alleged influence-peddling.