International
US, Brazil planning Biden-Lula meeting in Washington
| By AFP |
Brazilian president-elect Luiz Inacio Lula da Silva and US officials said Friday he is planning a trip to meet with President Joe Biden at the White House before taking office on January 1.
“I can confirm that we are planning for a visit,” White House National Security Council spokesman John Kirby told reporters. “We look forward to welcoming President Lula here at the appropriate time.”
Kirby said Biden’s national security advisor, Jake Sullivan, would travel to Brazil Monday to meet with the incoming Lula team, as well as with outgoing President Jair Bolsonaro’s administration.
Veteran leftist Lula defeated far-right incumbent Bolsonaro in a hard-fought election in October, returning to power after two presidential terms from 2003 to 2011.
Lula said he and Sullivan would “hold talks and discuss the date” for a visit to Washington — probably after December 12, the day his victory is formally ratified by Brazil’s electoral tribunal, he told a news conference in Brasilia.
US-Brazilian relations have chilled since Biden defeated former president Donald Trump, Bolsonaro’s political role model, in the 2020 US election.
But ties look set to warm under Lula.
Biden was one of the first world leaders to congratulate him on his election win.
“I think we have a lot to say to each other,” Lula said.
“The United States is facing the same problems with democracy as Brazil. The damage Trump did to American democracy is the same as what Bolsonaro did to Brazil.”
Diplomatic issues on the table will include “US-Brazilian relations, Brazil’s role in the new geopolitics (and) the unnecessary Ukraine war,” Lula said.
The Biden administration will also likely be keen to discuss climate policy, after four years of surging deforestation in the Brazilian Amazon under agribusiness ally Bolsonaro.
Lula vowed last month at the UN climate conference in Egypt — which Bolsonaro skipped — to fight for zero deforestation in Brazil’s 60-percent share of the world’s biggest rainforest, a key resource in the fight to curb climate change.
The incoming president said he would also begin naming his cabinet ministers after December 12 — with markets particularly anxious over his pick for finance minister, amid concerns about how his government will pay for his promised social spending.
International
Maduro, Delcy Rodríguez sued in Florida over alleged kidnapping, torture and terrorism
U.S. citizens have revived a lawsuit in Miami against Venezuelan President Nicolás Maduro following his capture, as well as against Vice President and now acting leader Delcy Rodríguez and other senior Chavista officials, whom they accuse of kidnapping, torture, and terrorism.
The plaintiffs — including U.S. citizens who were kidnapped in Venezuela and two minors — filed a motion over the weekend before the U.S. District Court for the Southern District of Florida asking the court to declare the defendants in default for failing to respond to the lawsuit initially filed on August 14, 2025, according to court documents made public on Monday.
The case, assigned to Judge Darrin P. Gayles, accuses the Venezuelan leaders of violating the U.S. Anti-Terrorism Act (ATA), the Florida Anti-Terrorism Act, and the Racketeer Influenced and Corrupt Organizations Act (RICO).
In addition to Maduro and Rodríguez, the lawsuit names Venezuelan Defense Minister Vladimir Padrino López; Attorney General Tarek William Saab; Interior Minister Diosdado Cabello; former Supreme Court Chief Justice Maikel Moreno; and National Assembly President Jorge Rodríguez.
The complaint also lists the state-owned oil company Petróleos de Venezuela (PDVSA) and former Electricity Minister Néstor Reverol as defendants.
According to the filing, Maduro “committed flagrant acts of terrorism against U.S. citizens,” citing the criminal case in New York in which Maduro and his wife, Cilia Flores, appeared in court for the first time on Monday following their arrest on Saturday.
The lawsuit claims that the plaintiffs “were held captive by Maduro” with “illegal material support” from the other defendants, whom it identifies as members of the Cartel of the Suns, a group designated by the United States as a terrorist organization last year.
International
U.S. faces worst flu season in decades as new strain spreads nationwide
The flu continues to take a heavy toll across the United States, with all but four states reporting high or very high levels of activity as a new viral strain known as subclade K continues to spread.
According to another key indicator — doctor visits for fever accompanied by cough or sore throat, common flu symptoms — the U.S. is experiencing its highest level of respiratory illness since at least the 1997–98 flu season, based on data released Monday by the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC).
“This is definitely a standout year,” said Dr. Caitlin Rivers, an epidemiologist and senior scholar at the Johns Hopkins Center for Health Security. “It’s the worst we’ve seen in at least 20 years. Most of the country is experiencing very high levels of activity, and we are still near the peak.”
Rivers noted that it is unusual to see such a severe flu season following another poor season the previous year, as intense seasons typically do not occur back to back.
Nationwide, approximately 8.2% of doctor visits during the final week of the year were for flu-like symptoms. At the same point last season — which was also severe — that figure stood at 6.7%.
In Massachusetts, where flu activity is reported as very high, health officials urged residents to get vaccinated.
“This is a moment for clarity, urgency, and action,” said Dr. Robbie Goldstein, Commissioner of Public Health, in a press release. “These viruses are serious, dangerous, and potentially deadly. We are seeing critically ill children, families grieving devastating losses, and hospitals under strain due to capacity.”
International
U.S. Energy Secretary to meet oil executives on reviving Venezuela’s crude industry
U.S. Secretary of Energy Chris Wright is set to meet this week with executives from the American oil industry to discuss how to revive Venezuela’s crude oil sector, according to multiple media reports.
The meeting will take place on the sidelines of an energy conference organized by investment banking group Goldman Sachs in Miami.
Senior executives from major U.S. oil companies, including Chevron and ConocoPhillips, are expected to attend the symposium.
Venezuela holds the world’s largest proven oil reserves, estimated at 300 to 303 billion barrels, representing roughly one-fifth of known global reserves.
Following the controversial operation carried out on Saturday to detain Venezuelan President Nicolás Maduro, U.S. President Donald Trump has placed renewed emphasis on control over and exploitation of Venezuela’s vast oil resources.
Maduro, Delcy Rodríguez sued in Florida over alleged kidnapping, torture and terrorism
U.S. faces worst flu season in decades as new strain spreads nationwide
U.S. Energy Secretary to meet oil executives on reviving Venezuela’s crude industry
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