Zelensky attempted an urgent meeting with the President of Brazil but was declined

Ukrainian officials didn’t publicly acknowledge the diplomatic setback but the information surfaced through journalists at the local publication O Globo, who learned about the meeting attempt from their sources.

While President Zelensky was flying to Argentina and made a two-hour stop in Brazil for refueling, he proposed an urgent meeting with Lula Da Silva. This was before the inauguration of the newly elected President of Argentina, Javier Milei. However, Lula declined as he was participating in a summit in Rio at the time. Brazilians were surprised by the sudden proposal from the Ukrainian president, which didn’t specify the agenda for the talks.

“Such a meeting at an airbase, without preparation and without prior notice, is very rare,” said a diplomat familiar with the situation. The Brazilian Ministry of Foreign Affairs sent the Minister of Europe and North America to meet him. Such an unprepared and abrupt visit request without preliminary conditions violates diplomatic traditions. Many meetings between leaders are planned for months and such an attempt could be seen as disrespectful.