Thinking through Brazil’s strategic leadership gap

This chapter argues that Brazil’s emergence has only been partial due to a lack of forward strategic thinking by the country’s foreign policy establishment. Tracing back to the 1993 foreign policy review Reflexões Sobre a Política Externa Brasileira, this chapter argues that despite Brazil’s surge onto the world scene, little has taken place in the way of revisiting and rethinking key concepts underlying its international interactions. Leadership, the chapter argues, requires the leader not only assume costs but also engage in activities potentially unpalatable to the led. For Brazil this is a challenge because there has not been a review of what traditional policies such as non-interventionism, autonomy, and a maximalist approach to sovereignty imply for a country that would be a leader.