French President Emmanuel Macron is trying to convince his Brazilian colleague Luiz Inacio Lula da Silva to support Ukraine. Macron is on a three-day visit to Brazil, writes Bloomberg, citing The Kyiv Independent.

This is the first visit of the French president in 11 years.

“At the center of his agenda will be trying to convince Brazilian President Luiz Inacio Lula da Silva to take a stand on the war,” Bloomberg reported.

“The French leader is betting that his differences with Lula over Russia’s invasion of Ukraine can be narrowed,” Bloomberg said, citing unnamed French officials.

While Macron has recently established himself as one of the most outspoken supporters of Ukraine, Lula has long tried to position himself as a mediator in the conflict and Brazil as a neutral party.

Bloomberg noted that Lula repeatedly rejected the armament of Ukraine and “believed that both sides share the blame for the war.”

Lula reportedly turned down President Volodymyr Zelenskyi’s request to meet in Argentina in December 2023, as both leaders attended the inauguration of Javier Millay, Argentina’s new president. Zelensky and da Silva last met on September 20 in New York on the sidelines of the UN General Assembly.

During a press conference with German Chancellor Olaf Scholz in January 2023, Lula said that Russia had made a mistake by invading Ukraine, but refused to condemn the large-scale invasion.

A few months later, Lula suggested that Ukraine should be open to giving up Crimea in exchange for peace with Russia.