Right-wing Brazilians wanted sanctions against the judge prosecuting Brazil’s former president. President Trump opted for something far bigger — tariffs.

United States President Donald Trump has taken to social media to defend his fellow right-wing leader Jair Bolsonaro, a former Brazilian president who faces criminal charges for allegedly plotting a coup d’etat. On Monday, Trump wrote on his social media platform Truth Social that Bolsonaro’s indictment was an example of political persecution.

As Brazil's Luiz Inacio Lula da Silva and Donald Trump trade blows, the person they are fighting over has sent mixed signals to investors trying to divine who will blink first.

The fight is rooted in years of political history between President Trump and the last two presidents of Brazil.