The foreign policies of rising powers

This research project seeks to gain greater clarity about rising powers' foreign policy, with a particular focus on India, Brazil and China and their respective roles in addressing global challenges. In areas such as energy governance, climate change, failed states, humanitarian assistance and development aid, these countries increasingly contribute to and influence global governance. How do they behave on the international stage that was previously dominated by Europe, the United States and Japan? Rising powers bring with them a whole set of new experiences and perspectives on the international system, and it remains unclear whether they will accept current structures and seek integration, or whether they will seek to create new platforms, such as the BRICS, that provide them with more influence. What are the key domestic constraints that influence the rising powers’ foreign policy, and how do they interpret global events internally? It is the projects goal to organize a series of workshops, bringing together researchers from China, India and Brazil, and publications that focus on rising powers' role in the context of specific global challenges. Coordinator: Oliver Stuenkel.

Global Governance in the 21st century

Today’s global structures are shaped by two large trends: the rise of non-traditional powers that are not fully integrated into the system, and the emergence of global challenges – such as climate change- that can no longer be solved by a small group of rich countries, requiring much more complex responses. These two aspects have profound implications on our understanding of order, justice, inequality, collective action and global norms and institutions. The established global governance structures (such as the UN Security Council or the G8) face the challenge of effectively integrating these new influences and experiences in order to be able to perform the task of providing the global public goods that they were created for. What does this mean for the working of international institutions and global governance mechanisms? What are the contributions of rising powers to global governance, and where can they assume leadership? How can existing international institutions and governance mechanisms be changed to make most out of the new geopolitical realities? Coordinator: Oliver Stuenkel.

Transformations in Europe

This research project discusses political transformations in Europe during the last decade - specifically after the financial crisis – as well as the impacts of these transformations in EU foreign policy. In particular, we focus on how these transformations affect EU relations with Latin America. Coordinator: Elena Lazarou.

 International Relations and Brazilian Foreign Policy under the Figueiredo Government

This project’s main objective is to produce a study of Brazilian Foreign Policy under the Figueiredo Government (1979-1985) using now primary sources recently declassified. As a part of this project CPDOC will receive the personal archive of Ambassador Ramiro Saraiva Guerreiro, Brazil’s Foreign Minister during the Figuieiredo administration.  Matias Spektor and Daniel Chaves will also publish a volume containing extracts from Minister Guerreiro’s oral history interview to CPDOC (1974-1979) and a selection of newly released documents. Coordinator: Matias Spektor.

18 Days

This project explores Brazilian views about the US from the end of the Cold War to the Inauguration of President Lula in 2003. It explores ideas and principles shaping Brazil’s foreign policy in an unipolar international system marked by rapid normative transformation. For this project Matias Spektor interviewed a number of Brazilian and American decision-makers, including  Condoleezza Rice; Fernando Henrique Cardoso; Donna Hrinak; Celso Lafer; John Maisto; Fulton Armstrong; Stanley Gacek; Peter Romero; Pedro Parente and José Dirceu. During the first semester of 2010, Marcos Tourinho and Matias Spektor collected relevant primary sources both at the National Archives and the National Security Archives, in Washington. Coordinator: Matias Spektor.

The Challenge to Trust Building in Nuclear Worlds

This project is coordinated by Professor Nicholas J. Wheeler, from the Department of International Politics of the University of Aberystwyth (United Kingdom) and the chapter dedicated to the analysis of the case of nuclear rivalry between Brazil and Argentina is managed in partnership with the Center for International Relations at FGV.

This project has 2 main analytical objectives. First, to apply insights from theories and practices of trust developed in the wider Social Sciences and Arts and Humanities to International Relations/security studies. Second, to establish trust as a core concept in International Relations/security studies.

The Center collaborates with the main project team in Aberystwyth in the development of the Brazil-Argentina case as an example of trust-building. He hope our efforts will lead us to better understand produce lessons concerning the building of trust, which have the potential of contributing to the development of new political approaches in the nuclear area.
 In order to produce new sources of primary research concerning this subject, the research group will work on a critical oral history: a research technique which collects oral history testimonies with more than one deponent at a time.

Memory of Nuclear Energy in Brazil

This project offers a collection of oral histories pertaining to the Brazilian nuclear program from inception to present day. We have interviewed key scientists, diplomats and military personnel who took part in the various efforts since the 1950s to develop indigenous nuclear technology.

The project is funded by Financiadora de Estudos e Projetos, Brazil and is coordinated by prof. Marly Motta (CPDOC/FGV).

A Global History of the Emerging World

This research deals with the origins of the Idea of “emerging countries” in international relations. It traces the process by which these entities in the post-colonial world have been regarded as special members of international society and have becomed the focus of specific policies during the Cold War. The narrative begins in 1960, during the Kennedy Administration, reaches its zenith during the Nixon/Ford/Carter governments, and starts to decline in the Reagen Era. The cycle of ascension of key-countries of the so-called Third World only re-emerges during the 1990s. This is, then, a study of the dynamics of the emerging world before the BRICs. Coordinator: Matias Spektor.

Azeredo da Silveira Project (2010)

This project’s aim was the publication of the long oral history interview by Brazil’s Foreign Minister Antônio Azeredo da Silveira (1979-1982). The book was completed in 2010 and launched in Rio de Janeiro and Brasília. A website was prepared especially to make available to the public extracts of documents, videos and a collection of videos featuring Minister Silveira donated by his family [http://silveiradepoimento.com.br]. Coordinator: Matias Spektor.

Brazilian Foreign Policy under Democracy (1989-)

This project collects personal archives and oral histories pertaining to Brazilian Foreign Policy under presidents Sarney, Fernando Collor de Mello, Itamar Franco, Fernando Henrique Cardoso, Luis Inacio Lula da Silva and Dilma Rousseff. Coordinator: Matias Spektor.