Brazil and the change in its defense strategy:

from autonomy to acquiescence (2003-2020)

Abstract

This article analyzes the strategic positioning of Brazil concerning its perception of the regional environment, considering that the resulting conduct in the field of national defense as a result of said appreciation has a strong impact on the geopolitical security dynamics of South America. In this framework, based on a synchronous analysis of the relevant facts in defense matters and the official documents of said country, the work suggests that since 2016 a change can be identified in the Brazilian defense policy and that this meant a shift in the strategic orientation of the defense policy followed since 2003, which was based on the construction of autonomy from the diversification of its international relations and by fostering South American integration. In this sense, it is argued that after the arrival of Temer to the Brazilian executive, Brazil's defense policy began to have a progressive orientation linked to the strategy of acquiescence, arguing that this is evidenced in its marked coupling with the United States of America. The article ends by indicating the impact that this change has had on Brazil's new national defense document and indicating the potential implications that the new geopolitical security dynamics of South America have for the Argentine Republic.