Politicising financial foreign policy: an analysis of Brazilian foreign policy formulation for the financial sector (2003- 2015)

Rubens De S Duarte,Maria Regina Soares De Lima

doi:10.1590/0034-7329201600113

Rubens De S Duarte, Maria Regina Soares De Lima

Open Access

https://doi.org/10.1590/0034-7329201600113

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Abstract

At the start of the 21st century, there was a reconfiguration of the Brazilian domestic political dynamic, as its actors gradually became more interested in the formulation of foreign policy and tried to safeguard their interests. When analysing the country's foreign policy for the financial sector, it becomes quite clear that to consider foreign policy simply as one type of public policy is insufficient to assess its decision-making process. This paper seeks to contribute to the debate by arguing that the analysis of foreign policy should be carried out by taking into consideration specific issue-areas. This paper explores the movement to rearrange domestic decision power, seeking to gain leverage in international negotiations.

Highlights

The end of the 20th century and the beginning of the 21st century were accompanied by great changes both in the domestic and international arenas; these have had an impact on the systemic constraints to which Brazil is subjected and, on its decision-making process regarding foreign policy
By analysing the domestic actors’ perspectives and capacity to influence the decision-making process in the financial sector between 2003 and 2015, this paper argues that each issue area of the Brazilian foreign policy has its own special features
In interviews with officials at these departments we found that there is a natural movement of coordination among the senior officials of the Secretariat for International Affairs (SAIN), the Department of International Affairs (DERIN) and the Department of Financial Affairs and Services (DFIN), but they are not held at any fixed intervals and there is no formality in this interaction

Summary

Introduction

The end of the 20th century and the beginning of the 21st century were accompanied by great changes both in the domestic and international arenas; these have had an impact on the systemic constraints to which Brazil is subjected and, on its decision-making process regarding foreign policy. The equalisation of the international debt, the macroeconomic stabilisation, the electoral victory of a left-wing party, and the gains in foreign policy autonomy should be highlighted This combination of international and domestic factors has favoured the deconcentration of world power, benefiting countries of the South and fostering a more independent participation of Brazil on the international scene. These changes influence the process of foreign policy formulation during president Lula da Silva’s government and first term of Dilma Rousseff, to the extent that they alter the political dynamic in the domestic arena as well as in the international one. While some foreign policy issues may be considered state policy (e.g. the guarantee of sovereignty, international security, the right to development, etc.), there is considerable room for each government to implement a foreign policy that is coherent with the political programmes that won at the elections (Lima and Duarte 2013)

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