Lula was invited by Putin in an earlier phone call, but said he could not travel to Russia at this time.| Photo: André Borges/EFE

President Luiz Inácio Lula da Silva (PT) denied, this Friday morning (26), an invitation made by President Vladimir Putin, of Russia, to participate in the International Economic Forum in Saint Petersburg, between the 14th and 17th of June.

Lula was invited by Putin during a telephone call earlier, in which he thanked him for the invitation, but that he could not attend at this time.

“I just spoke by phone with the President of Russia, Vladimir Putin. I thanked him for an invitation to attend the International Economic Forum in Saint Petersburg, and replied that I could not go to Russia at the moment, but reiterated Brazil’s willingness, along with India, Indonesia and China, to talk to both sides of the conflict in pursuit of peace,” he said in a post on twitter.

The Brazilian president also referred to Russia’s war against Ukraine, in which he has been repeatedly asked to take a clear position on which side he is on.