Lula da Silva who has already served two terms from 2003-2011 was elected President in October 2022. Continuing from his previous terms, his current foreign policy objectives are to turn Brazil into a pivot in international affairs and renew diplomatic engagements. He has stressed multipolarity, regional cohesion within Latin America, and greater cooperation within the Global South. In terms of engaging with major powers such as the US and China, and concerning the Ukraine crisis, he has sought balance in his approaches. Brazil’s current pattern of engagement highlights a shift from the tenure of Jair Bolsonaro when engagements were much reduced.
President Lula has focussed on major themes such as climate and finance, creating alternative currencies to the US Dollar, and multilateralism.
In his current tenure, President Lula has made several outreaches at various levels. He has held bilateral meetings with leaders in Latin America and with the US and China. In terms of multilateral engagement, President Lula has actively participated in the Seventh CELAC Summit, the 49th G7 Summit, and the Paris Climate and Finance Summit to name a few.
Based on the current engagements, few trends have emerged and this paper examines the foreign policy approaches of Brazil under President Lula in the immediate neighbourhood in Latin America and the US, his visits overseas, and his position on multilateral platforms.
Engagements with Latin America and Mercosur
President Lula made bilateral visits to Argentina, Uruguay, and Colombia. He restored diplomatic ties with Venezuela which were ruptured in 2020 under the Presidency of Jair Bolsonaro. In Latin America, President Lula has focussed on reviving Brazil’s leadership and envisioned a pan-Latin American outlook across ideologies. He stressed the importance of creating a common currency with Argentina to circumvent the US Dollar. As climate change and the environment are important aspects of President Lula’s foreign policy, Brazil has decided to host the Amazon Summit in August 2023 to find solutions to environmental problems in the region. Brazil has witnessed a 34 percent[i] reduction in deforestation in the Amazon in the first half of the year owing. President Lula held discussions with President Gustavo Petro of Colombia to cooperate along the lines of the Amazon Treaty Cooperation Organisation (ACTO)[ii]. He further stressed sustainable development, fight deforestation and climate change. In his meeting with Uruguayan President Luis Lacalle Pou, focus was laid on the importance of the Mercosur and its unity[iii]. Uruguay has been exploring a possible Free-Trade Agreement with China which may lead to fissures within the Mercosur. President Lula persuaded his Uruguayan counterpart to explore such agreements within the ambit of the Mercosur.
Brazil is in the process of finalising the EU-Mercosur Agreement[iv] which despite being negotiated in 2019 is pending ratification. Certain issues have emerged such as the EU’s firm stance regarding penalizing deforestation and non-adherence to climate change goals in accordance with the 2015 Paris Agreement[v]. As the Pro-Tempore President of the Mercosur, Brazil is actively engaged in bringing fruition to the EU-Mercosur Agreement despite issues. Brazil’s invitation to Venezuela at the South American Summit elicited objections from Chile, Uruguay, and Paraguay[vi], although President Lula stated that Venezuela was entitled to decide its internal affairs and that narratives against it were promoted by Western countries with vested interests.
Engagements with the US, China, and Brazil’s Position on the Ukraine Crisis
President Lula visited the US and held discussions with President Joe Biden on various topics. Before the meeting which took place on 10th February 2023, Brazil had declined two Iranian warships[vii] from docking in Rio de Janeiro after concerns were raised by the US. However, after the meeting, in late February the warships were allowed to dock. Both Presidents discussed various areas of cooperation such as climate change, sustainable development, promoting democratic values, UNSC reforms, and economic collaboration[viii]. Apart from marking US$ 500 million[ix] in contribution to the Amazon Fund, President Biden agreed to cooperate on the expansion of the UNSC to include permanent members from Latin America and the Caribbean.
President Lula’s visit to China on 12th April was in the backdrop of both observing fifty years of diplomatic relations. Traveling along with a delegation of businesspersons and diplomats, the idea was to reinvigorate ties with China, which is Brazil’s main trading partner since 2009 with bilateral trade touching US$ 150 billion in 2022[x]. Discussions took place over cooperation in various fields such as renewable energy, industries, lines of credit, and information technology. Apart from signing 15 Agreements[xi], both sides agreed to explore various other mechanisms for cooperation. President Lula’s engagement with China appears to be an approach in continuation of his previous tenures. Under Jair Bolsonaro the thorny issues of Brazil with China were because of criticisms of Chinese business practices and a visit to Taiwan.
President Lula has adopted a balanced approach to the Ukraine Crisis. He proposed a Peace Plan[xii] to end the crisis where he called for the creation of a group of neutral countries to pursue negotiations. He condemned the territorial violation of Ukraine but desisted from supplying arms to the conflict and stayed away from imposing sanctions on Russia.
Engagements with the US, and China and his position in the Ukraine crisis can be seen in the light of his pragmatism and willingness to turn Brazil into a major player in global affairs. President Lula’s engagements are based on active-non-alignment and seek to maintain a balance between the US and China which have divergent views on various issues.
Multilateral engagements
President Lula has renewed multilateral engagement similar to his previous terms. He attended various significant events[xiii]. At these multilateral forums, he stressed certain common themes such as poverty alleviation, global income inequality, climate change, food security, and the need to create alternative currencies and reform international institutions. He stressed the importance of multilateral agreements to solve global crises and reaffirmed Brazil’s commitment to end deforestation by 2030.
Regarding global institutional reforms, he reiterated that financial autonomy for developing countries is of primary importance and called for the creation of a BRICS currency. He criticized the developed countries for their attitude towards climate change and called for greater cooperation in funding and green technology.
Conclusion
President Lula’s foreign policy is a continuation of engagements in his two previous terms. Exhibiting a distinct shift from the policies of Jair Bolsonaro, he has sought to renew engagements at all levels to reinsert Brazil as a prominent player in global politics. While maintaining a posture of active non-alignment, he has taken positions on global concerns such as the Ukraine crisis, climate change, global financing, and reforms of global institutions. His focus is more on building convergences with the Global South as a distinct shift from the Western countries. Additionally, his engagement with countries having divergent views on major issues highlights balance in his approach as he seeks to maximise benefits for Brazil.
However, some challenges require surmounting, such as the EU-Mercosur deal and maintaining equidistance between the US and China. On a regional level, maintaining regional unity within the Mercosur will require active diplomacy. Given the geopolitical fissures of the present world, Brazil has made a concerted effort to renew its engagement in Latin America and the world and to position itself as a solution provider.
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*Dr. Arnab Chakrabarty, Research Fellow, Indian Council of World Affairs, New Delhi.
Disclaimer: Views expressed are personal.
Endnotes
[i] Caroline Pulice, Jake Spring. (7th July 2023). Deforestation in Brazil’s Amazon drops 34% in first half 2023. Reuters, Accessed 20th July 2023. https://www.reuters.com/business/environment/deforestation-brazils-amazon-drops-34-first-half-2023-2023-07-06/.
[ii] Presidência da República, Brasil. (8th July 2023). President Lula’s visit to Leticia, Colombia and participation in the closing of the Technical-Scientific Meeting of the Amazon- July 8, 2023, Presidência da República, Accessed 17th July 2023. https://www.gov.br/mre/en/contact-us/press-area/press-releases/president-lulas-visit-to-leticia-colombia-and-participation-in-the-closing-of-the-technical-scientific-meeting-of-the-amazon-july-8-2023.
[iii] Buenos Aires Times. (25th January 2023). Lula in Uruguay: Meeting with Lacalle Pou and a wink to the opposition. Buenos Aires Times. Accessed 11th June 2023. https://www.batimes.com.ar/news/economy/lula-in-uruguay-meeting-with-lacalle-pou-and-a-nod-to-the-uruguayan-opposition.phtml.
[iv] Reuters. (24th June 2023). Brazil’s Lula calls for common sense negotiations on EU-Mercosur Trade Pact. Reuters, Accessed 7th July 2023. https://www.reuters.com/world/americas/brazils-lula-calls-common-sense-negotiations-eu-mercosur-trade-pact-2023-06-24/
[v] Mercopress. (5th July 2023). Mercosur challenges EU’s environmental demands in FTA: Uruguay goes rogue again. Mercopress. Accessed 7th July 2023. https://en.mercopress.com/2023/07/05/mercosur-challenges-eu-s-environmental-demands-in-fta-uruguay-goes-rogue-again
[vi] Oliver Stuenkel. (23rd January 2023). At CELAC Summit, Left-Wing Leaders may not find Agreement. Americas Quarterly, Accessed 10th June 2023. https://www.americasquarterly.org/article/at-celac-summit-left-wing-leaders-may-not-find-agreement/.
[vii] The IRIS Makran and IRIS Deka were the two Iranian warships that were later on allowed to dock at Rio de Janeiro despite the US urging caution.
[viii] The White House. (10th February 2023). Remarks by President Biden and President Lula da Silva of Brazil before bilateral meeting. The White House, Accessed 17th June 2023. https://www.whitehouse.gov/briefing-room/speeches-remarks/2023/02/10/remarks-by-president-biden-and-president-lula-da-silva-of-brazil-before-bilateral-meeting/
[ix] Cede Silva. (20th April 2023). Biden pledges USD 500 million for Amazon Fund. The Brazilian Report. Accessed 17th June 2023. https://brazilian.report/liveblog/2023/04/20/biden-pledge-amazon-fund/.
[x] Presidência da República, Brasil. (10th April 2023). Brazil’s President Lula makes third state visit to China. Presidência da República, Accessed 11th June 2023. https://www.gov.br/planalto/en/latest-news/brazil2019s-president-lula-makes-third-state-visit-to-china.
[xi] Inma Bonet Bailen. (14th April 2023). Lula reafirma su apoyo ante Xi: “Brasil quiere que la relación con China trascienda más allá de lo comercial” El País, Accessed 14th June 2023. https://elpais.com/internacional/2023-04-14/lula-reafirma-su-apoyo-ante-xi-brasil-quiere-que-la-relacion-con-china-trascienda-mas-alla-de-lo-comercial.html.
[xii] Anthony Boadle. (19th April 2023). Brazil’s Lula condemns invasion of Ukraine, touts peace initiative. Reuters, Accessed 13th June 2023. https://www.reuters.com/world/ukraine-invites-brazils-lula-visit-criticizes-his-peace-efforts-2023-04-18/
[xiii] In total till July 2023 President Lula has attended 7 multilateral events which are the Seventh CELAC Summit, the South American Summit, the 62nd Summit of the Heads of Mercosur, COP 27, the 49th G7, the Paris Climate and Finance Summit, and the EU-CELAC Summit.