Ukraine Seeks to Bypass Lula's Veto to Buy Embraer Fighter Aircraft - 22/09/2026 - World - Folha de S.Paulo

Ukraine has resumed negotiations to buy Embraer Super Tucano light attack aircraft, seeking to bypass President Lula's veto on supplying weapons to Kyiv. In 2022, under Bolsonaro, the request had already been denied due to trade relations between Brasília and Moscow, and Lula refused to reopen the issue in 2023.

The new round of talks was announced by former Ukrainian president Petro Poroshenko, who lost reelection to Zelensky in 2019 but remains influential in business circles. According to him, at the MSPO-2026 fair in Poland, "we reached an agreement with Brazilian manufacturer Embraer and selected a fleet of 24 Super Tucanos capable of intercepting and destroying drones." He said Ukraine would "negotiate with one of the NATO countries that has contracts with Brazil."

Embraer did not respond to requests for comment. Poroshenko may be speculating without a formal commitment from the Brazilian side, but Kyiv has not denied the claim. The aircraft is considered effective against drones because of its low-speed performance. Within European NATO members, only Portugal operates the model.

Brazilian law requires authorization from Brasília for the re-export of military equipment. According to the government, no request has reached Itamaraty, and the veto remains in force. Brazil condemned the 2022 invasion but refused to join sanctions against Russia.