Brazils Rise to the Global Stage (BraGS): Humanitarianism, Peacekeeping and the Quest for Great Powerhood

Over the past decade, the rise of new powers has changed the international arena, as Brazil, Russia, India, China and South Africa as well as other emerging powers have sought to influence the conduct of international affairs. The quest for influence has brought these powers into policy arenas previously reserved for traditional great powers. As a consequence, fields such as trade negotiations, development aid, and international peace and security have undergone significant changes. These changes have raised questions about the role of Brazil in particular. Brazil has adopted a role of leader for the Global South in trade negotiations, while making the case for less conditionality on development aid and less interference in what it sees as sovereign affairs. It has also involved itself significantly in changing the international peace and security agenda. In all these fields, Brazil has brought new ideas and commitments to the table. Yet, the motivations behind these specific Brazilian foreign policy engagements for long remained unclear. It could even seem a paradox for this widespread and increasing international engagement to emerge at a time when Brazil itself is still a developing country by many standards. In spite of internal issues of poverty and urban violence, and a slowdown of its economy, Brazil for a long time continued to increase its contributions to humanitarian assistance and peacekeeping. Since 2013 however, there has been a net decrease in the budget allocated to international cooperation, that also needs to be understood, whether it is a mere consequence of what has become an economic downturn, or a sign of a new course in Brazil's policies. Yet beyond merely economic factors, this project has sought to understand: What are the benefits, in terms of symbolic power or increased influence, that Brazil draws from its international engagement? First of all, the project has led to a better understanding of how Brazil itself understands the humanitarian field and field of peacekeeping. The traditional distinction between "humanitarian aid" and "development aid" in Western aid architectures are not necessarily as visible in Brazil's international cooperation, where each tends to bleed into each other. This is reinforced by a complex web of agencies and ministries with responsibility to follow up different parts of Brazil's foreign aid. Key in Brazil's international cooperation is its focus on South-South cooperation and an emphasis on the two-way exchange in cooperation. This is reflected in preference for terms such as "partnership", "sustainability", over for instance "humanitarian aid", in the policy descriptions of its activities. Further, our research has led to a better and more in-depth understanding of both Brazil's positioning, and the conceptual differences between the terms "rising" and "emerging", the latter including a notion of actors seeking to defy and challenge the current international order. Furthermore, our research highlighted the difficulties in translating increased capabilities and ambitions into actual recognition, as has been the case for Brazil - not least because of the continued identification of emerging powers with the periphery of the international liberal order.

As a new player in the field of humanitarian assistance, Brazil has brought a new form of moral and strategic motivations to the table. However, humanitarian action also serves Brazil's regional and international ambitions as a rising power. This project looks at the drivers behind this engagement: what does Brazil achieve, in terms of direct benefits as well as in terms of symbolic influence, from investing in the international diplomacy of humanitarianism and protection? It may seem a paradox for this widespread and rapidly increasing international engagement to emerge at a time when Brazil itself is still a developing country by many standards and experiencing a recent economic slowdown. This puzzle, however, draws our attention to other drivers beyo nd excess of wealth, namely what motivates Brazil and what it aims to achieve through these investments, whether in the form of direct benefits, or indirectly in the form of increased symbolic power and influence, regionally and internationally. Through its engagement, Brazil has sought to reconceptualize both humanitarianism and peacekeeping, in line with its more principled stance on sovereignty, non-intervention and less conditionality. The point of departure of the project is innovative as it does n ot seek to understand the engagement of Brazil in terms of the traditional binary between challenging norms or assimilating to them, but rather contends that this must be a matter of empirical inquiry. BraGS will address these through a collaborative pro ject bringing together both Norwegian (PRIO and NUPI) and Brazilian (PUC-Rio, Unisantos, Igarapé) institutions and researchers. The output of the project will be a series of articles to be published in international peer-reviewed journals, and an edited volume on the topic. The project will also seek to engage a wider audience through seminars, op. eds., and blogs.