Brazil-U.S. Relations: A Diplomatic Review

 The relationship between the United States and Brazil is deep and complicated, and there are long-lasting problems that both test and strengthen it. Things have changed a lot and quickly in the background of these problems, though. This is true for issues like crime, climate change, democracy and government, and sustainable development. In all of these cases, both domestic and foreign trends have made the problems worse. If the relationship is to move forward, both people will have to change. But there is also a problem: China and the United States have very different ideas about how the world should work now and in the future. If Brazil wants to move forward with its world goals, it needs to learn more about the current state of geopolitics. In the same way, if Washington wants to have a better relationship with Brazil, it needs to stop trying to get Brazil to join a group of countries that are against China. Instead, Washington should realize that a free Brazil that makes real contributions to global food security, climate change, and regional security can help keep the peace around the world.

Since the end of the Cold War, ties between the US and Brazil have been mostly stable, if not close

They have been professional, but not well attended to. But not too late. When Donald Trump was elected as president, it caused a lot of anxiety and confusion in many of America's relationships with other countries. After that, Jair Bolsonaro was elected as President of Brazil, which ironically made things better at the top while causing chaos in Brazilian government. Then, when Joe Biden was chosen as U.S. president, things got back to normal for one half of the equation. However, there was a big question mark over the relationship. But those ups and downs were nothing compared to what came next. Things have gone through the following changes in the U.S.-Brazil relationship in just over six months: There was historic support for Brazil's election systems from the United States, which helped make sure the results were free and fair. There was also an attack on Brazil's Congress on January 8, which had strong similarities to the attempted coup in the United States on January 6. There was also a visit to Brasília by U.S. National Security Advisor Jake Sullivan, which led to the quickly planned Biden-Lula summit in Washington, D.C., a month later, and a strong statement of shared priorities between the region's two largest democracies.2 At the same time, Lula was making it clear that he wanted a foreign strategy that was independent. In order to give Brazil a major role in peace talks about the Ukraine war, he began to put it into action through Senior Policy Advisor Celso Amorim's "shuttle diplomacy." During Lula's trip to Beijing and the comments he made about the U.S. "encouraging" the war in Ukraine, this effort was most visible. These comments were met with rare, harsh public rejection from the White House.

The following also-important events happened with less fanfare

The U.S. decision to give $500 million to the Amazon Fund; Dilma Rousseff's election as president of the BRICS New Development Bank, which is the most important non-Western institution for order, at a time when Washington is trying to protect the current order; the alignment between the U.S. and Brazil at the International Atomic Energy Agency in the face of Chinese efforts to stop the high-priority agreement between Australia, the U.K., and the U.S. on nuclear-powered submarines; and Lula's attendance at the G-7 Summit in Hiroshima, Japan. A great run for a country that doesn't get enough attention in an area that doesn't get enough attention in Washington. Matias Spektor, a well-known Brazilian think tank head, said, "...there has been an under appreciation both in Washington and, most importantly, in Brasília as to how important this relationship is." But things are changing. Even though Lula's actions in Ukraine and words in China hurt U.S.-Brazil ties, one thing that is clear from the past few months is that Brazil is once again becoming the most important country in Latin America and a major player in world affairs. The United States and Brazil have had diplomatic, institutional, commercial, and social ties for a long time. However, the official relationship will be shaped more and more by the way the world is changing quickly, including the relationship between the United States and China, the competition between countries in geopolitics, and the dynamic changes in the economy.

Some of the biggest countries in the world are fighting for power in every part of the world, including the Western Hemisphere

This is because both the US and Brazil have a global view of things. Tom Shannon Jr., who used to be the U.S. ambassador to Brazil, recently said it best: "Both countries have global goals that go far beyond their borders." There are places in the world where both the United States and Brazil have addresses. For example, the United States has an address in North America, while Brazil has an address in South America. This means that the bond between the two countries is not the only thing at stake. Each country will continue to shape the future of the region while dealing with its own problems. Both will also be participating in the fight to change the rules of the international order. While the United States' role is clearly much more important, top Washington officials are becoming more aware that Brazil could be a key partner (and, by extension, a key obstacle) in protecting and changing important parts of an international order that is under pressure.