Venezuelan President Nicolás Maduro arrived in Brazil Monday, marking his first visit since he was banned by former far-right President Jair Bolsonaro. Maduro was welcomed to the national palace in the capital Brasília by President Luiz Inácio Lula da Silva ahead of a meeting of 11 South American presidents today. During a joint news conference, President Lula sharply criticized the United States for failing to recognize Maduro’s legitimacy, and for economic sanctions that have devastated Venezuela’s economy.

President Luiz Inácio Lula da Silva: “Is it his fault? No, it’s the fault of the United States, which created an extremely exaggerated blockade. I always say that a blockade is worse than war, because in a war it’s usually soldiers who die in battle, but a blockade kills children, women, people who have nothing to do with the ideological dispute in play.”