Brazil’s Role and Importance as a Middle Power
Brazil’s national anthem declares the country “a giant by nature.” Brazilian politicians, diplomats, and pundits further this narrative, arguing that the country’s influence stems not merely from its actions but from inherent characteristics, such as its size, population, and natural resources. This self-perception helps explain why many Brazilian policymakers are skeptical of the label “middle power.”1With 211 million inhabitants, Brazil is the world’s sixth most populous and the fifth-largest country. Its sheer size has long fueled a persistent belief among its political elites that it deserves to be seen as more than just a middle power.
This produces a continuous tension not only between Brazil’s foreign policy ambitions and its influence but also between its self-perception and the way others see and treat it. It also explains, to some extent, why Brazil was initially so enthusiastic about the emergence of the BRICS grouping (which originally consisted of Brazil, Russia, India, and China and expanded to include South Africa in 2010), as it implicitly equated the country’s standing to larger powers included in the group.2
Brazil’s long-standing official narrative of being an “emerging power” and a resource-rich “country of the future” gained momentum during the first decade of the 21st century thanks to high economic growth, fueled by Chinese demand for commodities, and significant progress in poverty reduction. China became Brazil’s primary trade partner in 2009, a relationship that has only deepened in the 15 years since, pushing the United States to second place. The commodity boom and expanding markets also helped Brazil recover faster than other countries from the global financial crisis.
