Brazil's Lula doesn't want to 'please anyone' with Ukraine stance

FILE PHOTO: Brazil's President-elect Luiz Inacio Lula da Silva attends a meeting with Portugal's President Marcelo Rebelo de Sousa (not pictured) and Mozambique's President Filipe Nyusi (not pictured), at Belem Presidential palace in Lisbon, Portugal, November 18, 2022. REUTERS/Rodrigo Antunes

LISBON (Reuters) -Brazil's Luiz Inacio Lula da Silva said on Saturday he did not want to "please anyone" with his views about Russia's invasion of Ukraine, after provoking criticism in the West for suggesting Kyiv shared the blame for the war.

Speaking in Lisbon at the start of his first visit to Europe since being elected president, Lula said his aim was to "build a way to bring both of them (Russia and Ukraine) to the table".