Under the motto “Brazil is back”, President Lula da Silva has been active primarily as a world traveler since his third election win in October 2022. Lula not only wants to quickly end Brazil’s isolation that emerged under his predecessor Jair Bolsonaro, but also restore his country’s role as one of the main power of the Global South. That’s why he went to the US and China right at the start of his term, because for decades it has been part of the country’s self-image to count itself among the world’s great powers and at the same time. emphasized its neutrality between the blocs.
As a founding member of BRICS (Brazil, Russia, India, China, South Africa), the organization representing the increasing geopolitical weight of the Global South, Brazil also seeks peace initiatives for Ukraine. However, Ukraine itself and its western allies consider this rather critical and have little prospect of success. So as not to jeopardize her role as mediator, Lula has so far refused all invitations to Kiev and Moscow.
The invitation of all South American presidents to a summit without a formal agenda at the end of May must be seen in the context of Lula’s efforts to revitalize Brazil’s international role. At the last presidential meeting in 2014 within the framework of the UNASUR (Union of South American States) regional multilateral organization initiated by Brasilia, the international weight of the country – and not only in the region – was still clearly recognized. Meanwhile, its economic importance has declined, since in the last decade the country’s share of global value added has almost halved.
In his opening speech, Lula emphasized the need to work together beyond all ideology
Among the eleven presidents who participated – the Peruvian president did not receive permission to leave his parliament – the lack of political weight due to their respective domestic political situations was too obvious. In Argentina and Ecuador, early elections are likely to bring about a change in the respective presidents. The heads of state of Chile and Colombia, as well as Brazil itself, are under intense pressure from the opposition for domestic reform projects. The current somewhat fragile political, economic and social situation overshadows the presidential meeting, but at the same time reflects the decline in regional cooperation mechanisms seen since 2017. In particular, criticism by the conservative government of UNASUR’s “ideological” orientation from 2017 to 2019 led to output of many countries (Argentina, Brazil, Chile, Ecuador, Colombia, Paraguay, Peru, Uruguay). This is why Lula in his opening speech emphasized the need to work together beyond all ideologies, because no country in this region has the strength to face the geopolitical and economic challenges of a globalized world. This set a pragmatic tone for the talks, as without the support of its neighbours, Brazil could hardly assume its desired role as regional spokesperson.
Although President Lula had planned a presidential meeting as a trigger for a return to UNASUR cooperation, due to the presence of Venezuelan President Nicolàs Maduro, the talks initially focused primarily on the ideological differences between the presidents present. However, President Lula is responsible for this himself, because – according to various colleagues – he has not emphasized enough human rights violations and authoritarian politics in a neighboring country, thus facilitating President Maduro’s return to local society. Brazil’s support for the entry of Venezuela and Argentina into the BRICS further reinforces this impression. Venezuela is closely linked to the largest regional migration crisis, with more than five million refugees, and its impact on the domestic and environmental policies of various countries. Until democratic advances can be seen in Venezuela, this is likely to continue to strain regional cooperation.
However, the discussion on many common issues was marked by many points of agreement, which were then set forth in the Brasilia consensus. In the future, regional cooperation is likely to concentrate mainly on individual fields of study. Interestingly, of the six priority themes, three – infrastructure, health and safety – have been adopted by the most successful UNASUR regional working groups. This is understandable especially in light of recent experiences with supply chain disintegration, the impact of the pandemic, and the rise of organized crime. In these three areas, the relevant national institutions have repeatedly demonstrated the need to continue the cooperation achieved through UNASUR in recent years.
The three new priority themes – climate change, energy and trade – reveal their increasing regional relevance, especially when looking at the highly topical sub-themes. Brazil, but also its neighbors, hold themselves accountable for climate change given the Amazon’s troubles – especially after extensive deforestation under former President Bolsonaro. When it comes to energy issues, the region sees itself as well-equipped due to “natural” advantages in the fields of renewable energy from solar and hydropower, even if efficient distribution mechanisms are lacking due to a lack of cooperation. The countries of the Lithium Triangle – made up of Argentina, Bolivia and Chile – are excited about China, the US and Germany’s race to participate in mining the element, as they hold more than half of the world’s lithium reserves.
The stated goal is to work towards establishing a free trade zone in South America.
Trade issues in Brasilia are all about facilitating regional trade. The stated goal is to work towards establishing a free trade zone in South America. The focus was on creating a regional currency, “Sur” (south). The reason is not only the reduction of transaction costs between individual countries by not using the US dollar, but also the possibility of avoiding the sizeable economic impact of US sanctions, especially against Russia.
In this context, the regional importance of the debate about the necessary de-dollarization of the BRICS countries should not be underestimated, nor should the increase in yuan settlements in trade exchanges with China in Brazil and Argentina. There is no doubt among the President that the road to a regional currency will be very long, as it is likely to encounter fierce resistance not only in the region itself, but especially in the US. First of all, working with the central bank, the possibility of creating regional accounting units – like ECU before in EU – under review.
The Brasilia consensus shows that the desire to continue regional cooperation, given the serious problems in individual states, despite ideological differences, is definitely there, even though the name UNASUR does not appear in the final document. The assignment of each foreign minister within four months to present progress reports on existing South American integration mechanisms and draw up a roadmap for future cooperation in South America should pave the way for a new multilateral political approach in the region.
