Imagem internacional do Brasil no início do século XXI: percepções sobre a ascensão

Abstract

The assumption of this work is the idea that the first decade of the 2000s was a period in which is possible to see a positive change in relation to the perception on the image and the role of Brazil in the international scenario. Realizing that the international political system works through a hierarchical logic of states, researches in international relations also seek to explain the place the units occupy and the relationship that exists between them in this system with a primary focus on the analysis of material resources they have. However, it is believed that it is equally important to understand how images and perceptions are constructed. In this sense, we comprise that perceptions about Brazil's place in the international system have changed as much from the external image as from its self-perception and these depend on the social, political and cultural context in which the country is inserted, and for that reason we must observe, in addition to material resources, the meanings collectively constituted. The specialized academy is understood, therefore, as a relevant actor to understand this process. A new discourse on the rise and emergence of Brazil can be found in the media, in the national and foreign academy, and in official discourse. Although we are faced with a recent phenomenon, with its own bases, it cannot be said that it is completely unprecedented. In the 1970s, several analyses dealt with the rise of Brazil with references to strong economic growth. In the 1970s, several analyses dealt with the emergence of Brazil with references to strong economic growth. Nonetheless, this view was counterbalanced by another, negative in relation to the absence of democracy, disrespect for human rights and social inequality. The context of the beginning of the 21st century is another. Both academic specialized production and the international media began to describe the country as a rising power, recognizing it as an emerging global player. Unlike what happened during the military dictatorship, the discourse and perception about Brazil in the early 2000s were settled in basically four factors: growth and economic stability, democracy, the reduction of social inequality and energy self-sufficiency. In addition, Brazil's potential as an exporter, the strong presence of the country in multilateral institutions and the relations with other developing countries, have often highlighted. The external perception of the rise of Brazil has an internal correspondent, in the assumption of this role and therefore in the production of a discourse of self-perception as an emerging power in both foreign policy and defence policy. In this sense, the construction of the image of Brazil as a power has had repercussions in determining the guidelines of these policies. National security and defence gain another status at the time that Brazil starts to see and be seen by its peers as power. Therefore, the importance of understanding the new perceptions about the place of Brazil in the international system within the defence studies.