O papel do governo Lula na evolução da identidade sul-americana da política externa brasileira

Abstract

This dissertation aimed to analyze what is the ascendancy that Lula's government has on the evolution of Brazil's Foreign Policy South American identity. The hypothesis of this study is that Lula's government was successful in strengthening the regional identity of the foreign policy, through the role of the diplomacy in the regional integration. This process occurred mostly inside a political dimension to the detriment of the economic and commercial realm, though one can usually consider the last as a guide for integration processes.The exploration of the concept of identity in international relations, a historical analysis of South America's role on Brazilian Foreign Policy and the comprehension of the phenomenon of the rise of leftist governments in the region work as starting points for this research. They make possible to reach the conclusion that the diplomacy put in practice by Lula's government succeeded in assuring the deepening of the foreign policy's South American identity, through its role in the regional institutions, so that it paved the way to build its leadership in the integration process.Brazil's efforts in creating new ideas to ensure more cooperation among its neighbors not always have turned into practical integration tools that could enable the quick institutionalization of the regional organizations. However, they helped strengthening the bonds between countries, taking advantage of a favorable political and ideological regional conjecture, through which the South American identity had conditions to thrive.