Rising powers in stormy seas: Brazil and the UNIFIL maritime task force

Abstract

ABSTRACTIn February 2011, after five years of NATO powers rotating at the helm of UNIFIL's Maritime Task Force, its command was handed over to Brazil. What factors have motivated Brazil's participation, especially in light of the geographic distances separating Brazil and Lebanon and deepening crisis in Brazil? This article analyses Brazil's engagement with UNIFIL in light of key foreign policy and defence priorities and identifies three key motivations: the aspiration to participate more directly in Middle East security issues; the historical and political ties between Brazil and Lebanon; and the chance to expand Brazil's naval capacity in accordance with its new naval defence strategy within the South Atlantic. More recently, however, economic slowdown and political turbulence domestically have created new challenges for Brazil's ability to maintain its contributions to UN peacekeeping. These shifts offer an opportunity to refine the use of the ‘rising powers’ concept in the study of international security.