The U.S. President, Barack Obama, asked the president Luiz Inácio Lula da Silva to use his influence to try to convince Iran to abandon its nuclear program.

According to the spokesman of the White House, Robert Gibbs, the matter was dealt with in a half-hour meeting between the two presidents on the morning of Thursday in Aquila, Italy, where is the annual meeting of the G8 summit, the group of eight most industrialized countries on the planet.

Lula met with Obama on the day following its meeting with members of the G5 (Brazil, Mexico, China, India and South Africa), on Wednesday. Later, they review the summit of the G8 (USA, Canada, UK, France, Germany, Italy, Japan and Russia) with the G5.

The U.S. president had said that, as a close trading partner of Iran, Brazil would be able to influence to prevent the country can develop nuclear weapons.

The G8 leaders said during the meeting on what Iran should not seek to develop nuclear weapons.

The special advisor for international affairs of Lula, Marco Aurelio Garcia, confirmed that the issue of Iran was raised by Obama during the conversation between the two presidents, but said that there was any censorship of the American leader on the close relationship between the Brazil and Iran governments.

Via BBC Brasil.