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In 2013 the BRICS (Brazil, Russia, India, China and South Africa) grouping agreed to undertake what will, when implemented, become its most concrete project yet: the BRICS Development Bank (BDB). From the perspective of the Chinese government, which already leads a vast and far-reaching cooperation programme, the bank will not represent a significant addition to its cooperation portfolio. What, then, motivates China's participation in the initiative, and what can it bring to the table? This article analyses China's interests in the BDB in the light of its past experiences with development, at home and abroad. I argue that China's interests in backing the bank project are primarily political. In addition to offering a concrete opportunity to legitimise China's multilateralism strategy -burnishing China's image as a responsible yet pro-reform global player -the bank project also allows China to influence international development norms. At the same time, the project also poses challenges for China, especially in terms of promoting poverty alleviation without resorting to trickle-down assumptions about an infrastructure-focused approach to development.

Until it began waning due to economic crisis and political turmoil on the domestic front, in Brazil’s rapidly expanding South-South development, cooperation often has been promoted by government officials as contributing to stability and prosperity in partner states. It is unclear, however, how this development cooperation intersects with the country’s involvement inunpeace operations. This article examines the role of Brazilian South-South technical cooperation across two contexts. In Haiti, Brazil has led the military component of theminustah, whereas in Guinea-Bissau, it has helped to spearhead peacebuilding efforts by the international community. In both cases, Brazil has tried to substantiate its critique of theun’s securitization by providing technical cooperation across a variety of sectors. The analysis shows that this cooperation is too fragmented, subject to interruptions, and disconnected fromun-led efforts to make a considerable contribution to a sustainable peace. However, better internal coordination and stronger ties touninitiatives could boost the contribution of Brazil’s Brazilian South-South development cooperation to a lasting peace.