The Strategy of Chaos: Brazilian Foreign Policy under Jair Bolsonaro (2019-2022)

Abstract

The aims of the article are to identify the main factors that have defined Brazil’s international insertion during Jair Bolsonaro’s administration as well as to explain the main foreign policy changes from 2019 to 2022. I argue that, although the alignment with the Donald Trump’s administration structured the main axes of Bolsonaro’s foreign policy and the ideological discourse in foreign policy has not been abandoned by the Brazilian government during Bolsonaro’s term, some adjustments were necessary in sensitive topics such as relations with China and the Venezuelan crisis to adapt to the interests of relevant segments of Brazilian politics. Bolsonaro’s foreign policy depends heavily on the outcome of the struggle between the pragmatic economic and military members of his administration on one side, and the religious and conservative ideologists on the other. The conclusions indicate that domestic interests – particularly the need to please Bolsonaro’s political base, which turned Brazil into a violator of indigenous, LGBTQIAP+, and other minorities’ rights – are more important than global commitments Brazil has previously assumed.