Brazil's Lula criticizes Trump for trying to "rule the world" through social media

SAO PAULO, Jan. 20 (Xinhua) -- Brazilian President Luiz Inacio Lula da Silva on Tuesday criticized U.S. President Donald Trump for attempting to "rule the world" through social media.

"Have you noticed that Trump wants to rule the world through Twitter?" Lula said at a public event in Rio Grande, a municipality in Brazil's southern state of Rio Grande do Sul.

"He says something different every day. It's not possible. And do you think it's possible to treat people with respect if we don't look them in the face? To think of them as objects rather than human beings?" he added.

Speaking at a ceremony for the handover of 1,276 homes, as part of a housing program expected to benefit approximately 5,000 people in southern Brazil, Lula referred to Trump while noting the need to "restore humanism in social relations."

He also urged the public to discourage the overuse of cellphones and defend his policy initiated in 2024 to ban them in elementary and middle school grades.

Brazil's president has not yet publicly commented on Trump's invitation to join the so-called "Board of Peace" to oversee developments in the Gaza Strip.

In closing his speech, Lula urged the public to spend less time on social media and to prioritize their personal relationships. ■