President Lula’s interview after Pope Francis’ funeral in Rome

Reporter: Mr. President, can you give us a word about Pope Francis’ ceremony?

President Lula: First of all, I think we have lost the most important religious leader of the first quarter of the 21st century.

Pope Francis, he was not just a pope. He was a feeling, he was a heart, he was a political leader. He cared not only about people's spirituality, but also about the war in Ukraine, the war in Gaza, hunger, and the struggles faced by people around the world.

Therefore, I believe that our presence here is a way of expressing our gratitude — our gratitude to God, who allowed us to take part in the farewell of a man who left his mark on the history of the 21st century. I am thankful to the President of the Senate for joining me in this trip, our dear President of the [Federal] Chamber, our deputies, my wife Janja, Ministers Lewandowski, Paulo Teixeira, Macaé… people in Brazil who actually appreciated Pope Francis’ behavior as a man, as a religious person.

So, I believe this was a debt we paid to a man who rendered services to humanity. May God allow the next Pope to be like him — with the same heart, the same religious devotion, and the same commitment to fighting inequality that Pope Francis had. I return to Brazil certain that we have fulfilled our duty, as Christians, as people of faith, and as public servants, by attending the funeral of such an admirable figure as Pope Francis.

Reporter: Mr. President, a scene that called our attention at the Basilica was Trump [Donald Trump, President of the United States of America] and Zelensky [Volodymyr Zelensky, President of Ukraine] having a conversation, as Francis had asked for. What do you expect from this conversation? Have you been following the peace negotiations?

President Lula: I do not know what they discussed, and I cannot guess from the conversation. Look, I believe it is important to keep talking, because we need to find a way out of this war — it is getting harder and harder to explain.

Nobody can explain it, and nobody wants to talk about peace. And Brazil keeps insisting: the solution is to get the two [countries] to sit down at the negotiating table and find a way out — not just for Ukraine and Russia, but also for the violence Israel is committing against the Gaza Strip.

Reporter: Did you greet President Trump?

President Lula: No, I did not greet him because I was talking to my team about the security situation at the exit, where there was a lot of confusion. So I did not greet him, I did not even look to the side — I did not actually see Trump