Lula was set to travel at 17:00 local time (20:00 GMT) on Sunday for what would have been his first face-to-face meeting with President Vladimir Putin this year.
On Friday, Putin announced that he will not attend the G20 summit in Brazil next month.
He said his arrival might “disrupt” the conference and insisted the International Criminal Court (ICC) warrant for his arrest was not a factor.
Last year, Putin skipped the previous Brics summit in South Africa after the ICC issued a warrant for his arrest.
If Putin left Russian soil, he would have been subject to the arrest warrant. As ICC signatories, South Africa and Brazil would have been expected to help in Putin’s arrest.
The Brics grouping is seen by some as an alternative to the G7 group of advanced economies.
The forum was founded 15 years ago by major emerging markets Brazil, Russia, India, China, and has since expanded to include South Africa, Egypt, Ethiopia, Iran and the United Arab Emirates.
This year’s summit will take place in the Russian city of Kazan from Tuesday to Thursday.
