Brazil's new President Luiz Inacio Lula da Silva accused former Brazilian President Jair Bolsonaro during an interview with a U.S. news network of acting as a "faithful copycat" of former United States President Donald Trump.
President Lula da Silva made the comments during an interview withCNN and told the network's host Christiane Amanpour on Friday that he did not believe Bolsonaro would ever return to the presidency in the South American nation.
A judiciary in Brazil is said to now be investigating the former president for attacking democracy after supporters stormed government buildings earlier this year in the country's capital of Brasilia.
Supporters were seen in videos rushing buildings in the South American capitol while carrying flags and recording after refusing to accept Bolsonaro's election defeat in scenes that drew comparisons by lawmakers and the media to the January 6, 2021 insurrection by Donald Trump supporters in Washington.
President Lula da Silva told CNN he would not request the extradition of Brazil's former president back to Brazil, putting the onus on a Brazilian judiciary to handle the matter as part of their investigation.
Bolsonaro faces at least four criminal investigations in Brazil, as Reuters reported. The former president has been in the U.S. state of Florida since the end of December.
Brazil's President Lula da Silva was in the U.S. to meet with President Joe Biden at the White House on Friday.
Lula da Silva said he hopes Bolsonaro will be convicted of genocide for his handling of the COVID-19 pandemic. Nearly 700,000 Brazilians are officially recorded as having died from complications caused by the virus.