1. Introduction: Brazil’s Humanitarian Engagement and International Status

Over the past 15 years, the rise of new powers is changing the international agenda, as Brazil, Russia, India, China and South Africa and other emerging powers seek to influence the conduct of multilateralism. The quest for influence is bringing these powers into fields and policy arenas previously reserved for traditional great powers. As a consequence, fields such as trade negotiations, development aid, and international peace and security are undergoing significant changes. These changes raise questions about the role of Brazil in particular. Brazil has adopted a role of leader for the Global South in trade negotiations, made the case for less conditionality and interference in what it sees as sovereign affairs, and involved itself significantly in changing the international peace and security agenda. In all these fields, Brazil has brought new ideas and commitments to the table. Yet, the drivers of specific Brazilian foreign policy engagements remain unclear. Specifically, the new policy areas in which emerging powers are engaging and Brazil’s shift from domestic to international engagement, and in this, its relations to its domestic constituencies, as well as to other rising powers and the established great powers, require a more sustained engagement.