Lula and Masoud Pezeshkian agreed to deepen bilateral cooperation just one day after the Iranian offensive against Argentina; the Brazilian dictator defended Iran's nuclear use
The meeting occurred just 24 hours after a significant diplomatic escalation between Iran and Argentina. The Iranian Ministry of Foreign Affairs declared on Wednesday that the Argentine Navy and the Argentine Air Force as “terrorist organizations”, in retaliation for the decision of the Government of Javier Milei to formally include the Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps in the Argentine register of terrorist organizations.
The socialist dictator of Brazil, Luiz Inácio Lula da Silva, met this Thursday with his Iranian counterpart, Masoud Pezeshkian, and agreed to deepen economic, commercial, and international relations between both dictatorial regimes just one day after Tehran declared “terrorist organizations” the Argentine Navy and Air Force.
The meeting took place in Antalya, Turkey, on the sidelines of COP31. The two dictators reviewed the state of bilateral relations and highlighted the need to leverage the capabilities of Brazil and Iran to expand cooperation in various areas. Among the publicly discussed topics were trade, science, and technology.
Lula also expressed Brazil's interest in increasing imports of Iranian fertilizers. The trade exchange between both countries reached only USD 3 billion during 2025, an extremely low figure for two economies that together account for more than 306 million inhabitants.
The Argentine Foreign Ministry categorically rejected the Iranian measure and described it as “unacceptable” and lacking in basis. Furthermore, it recalled that Argentine justice attributed responsibilities to Iran for the attacks against the Israeli Embassy in 1992 and against AMIA in 1994 and reiterated the demand for cooperation to ensure that the accused appear before Argentine courts.
Despite the open conflict between Tehran and Buenos Aires, Lula moved forward with his bilateral and personal agenda with Pezeshkian. During the conversation, they also addressed the war in the Middle East, international negotiations, and the Iranian nuclear program.
The Brazilian dictator cited the Tehran Declaration of 2010, promoted at that time by Brazil and Turkey, and again defended Iran's right to use nuclear energy. He also expressed concern about the impact of Middle Eastern conflicts on international fuel prices and made more statements aligned with the Muslim dictatorship.
