Portugal and Latin America in the 21st century: diplomacy, economy and culture as needed

This blog post develops the arguments presented in the book chapter: Fonseca, C (2023) “Portuguese foreign policy to Latin America: a yo-yo approach”, In Gardini, Gian Luca (ed.), The redefinition of the EU presence in Latin America. Berlin: Peter Lang. DOI: 10.3726/b21.282

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While it is common to assume that Portugal is a strategic player and a connecting element between Europe and Latin America, is that really the case? After re-democratization in 1974, Portugal witnessed small but structural changes in foreign policy by shifting its central axis to Europe and joining the European Economic Communities (EEC) in 1986, without, however, relinquishing its “Atlantic vocation”. 

At the same time, and progressively, there has been, on the one hand, an adjustment of some guidelines for external action, namely in relations with Africa, which began to unfold in a different framework, and with the Ibero-American axis, in which relations have adapted and expanded, in the face of the demands imposed by democratisation. On the other hand, some innovations also took place, notably economic diplomacy and cultural diplomacy (with a focus on the Portuguese language), a trend which in Latin America was gaining ground later, mainly through Brazil. This period was also marked by a relaxation of relations with Brazil, which were normalized following the completion of the African decolonization process and the stabilisation of Portuguese political institutions in the late 1970s.

In the Latin American context, given that Portugal was largely committed to the EEC adhesion process, Brazil’s presence in Portuguese foreign policy was limited to the official rhetoric and to the attempt to raise awareness in the European agenda for relations with Brazil, in particular, and with Latin America, in general. Likewise, Portugal was finding support in Spain but also having difficulty in differentiating itself from its neighbour, which was at the same stage as Portugal about the definition of its international identity, the integration into the European Communities and the monetisation of the relationship with Latin America.

The words and deeds of Portuguese foreign policy

Regarding Portuguese foreign policy, the 20th century closed with the marks of economic diplomacy and the “Brazilian option”, put into practice by the government of Prime Minister António Guterres. This strategy guided Portuguese trade and investments, preferably to Brazil, but reaching also other countries in the region. Upon entering the new century, Guterres’s second government (1999-2002) sought to reconcile the opening of the Brazilian economy with economic growth and the expansion of the Portuguese business, which benefited from European economic integration, which, however, started to lose steam. Between 2011 and 2015, in the midst of the economic crisis, the government of Pedro Passos Coelho had the chief task of managing the troika rescue, and the Deputy Prime Minister, Paulo Portas, revived economic diplomacy and defined Brazil and the core economies of Latin America as targets for Portugal’s external action. During this period, Guterres’s “Brazilian option” appeared to be gradually replaced and extended to emerging markets, including the Lusophone ones, as an instrument at the service of the interests and eco- nomic needs “for the international prestige” of the country.

In the previous years, Durao Barroso’s government (2002-2004), as well as José Sócrates’s (2005-2011) did not attach the same importance to the relationship with Latin America or Brazil, and, instead, invested in the relationship with Spain. However, during Socrates’s government, after the economic crisis broke out, there was a timid exercise in economic diplomacy. His government programs reiterated the same objectives as those of Portuguese foreign policy, including the need for the internationalisation of the Portuguese economy. There is, however, no reference to a strategy of rapprochement with Latin America or Brazil, in particular. Moreover, not only was Spain the destination of his first official visit, but his words highlighted the relations with the neighbouring country. The global economic and financial crisis that followed, however, required some adjustments to be made, requiring a focus on Latin America since the context of the crisis that was battering all European countries including Spain – this relationship experienced its lowest point during this period. Without compromising the relationship with the EU, Portugal diversified its partners, particularly in the search for Brazil and Latin America, later afflicted by the shockwaves of the crisis. 

For António Costa’s government (2015–2021), neither Latin America nor Brazil was a priority. Portuguese foreign policy has been an extension of European foreign action, added to the centrality of the promotion of the Portuguese language. The decline experienced by Latin American economies since 2015, the political and social crises in Latin America, topped by the emergence of far-right populist leaders, have pushed the region away from the radars of Portuguese foreign policy. The cornerstone of Portuguese foreign policy in the last decade laid in the promotion of the Portuguese language – Portugal’s differentiating element in the European Union. 

Portugal-Brazil relations themselves have been stagnant. Naturally, the historical foundations of the Portuguese-Brazilian relation dispense, to some extent, political action. However, this trend shrinks the possibilities to achieve concrete and long-term results. In the year marking the 200th anniversary of Brazil’s independence, what stands out is a lack of political harmony between the two sides of the Atlantic.

Final remarks

The analysis allows us to conclude that it is when economic diplomacy emerges on the Portuguese foreign policy agenda that Latin America jumps to the list of priorities. There is not, however, a Portuguese strategy for the region. Its role and place on the Portuguese agenda are neither straightforward nor constant, nor do they always have the same intensity. 

Latin America has never been the priority of Portuguese foreign policy, even if at times that is the official narrative. And even when it is on the list of Portugal’s external action, it lacks a medium or long-term guiding strategy. The place held by Latin America in Portuguese foreign policy derives from – and oscillates between – its Atlantic dimension, which views Latin America as an extension of Portugal’s foreign policy priorities and its Euro-Atlantic sensitive axis, and its European dimension, which compels Portugal to align with the European Union’s external action agenda. In recent years, this dual orientation has remained a consistent trend. These fluctuations are driven not only by ideological or partisan factors but also by conjunctural dynamics.

Today, as in the past, Latin America has a marginal place in Portuguese foreign policy. Throughout the 21st century, the relationship has been characterised by moments of oscillation, in which Portugal reaches out and pulls away according to its interests, government perceptions and internal and European conjunctures.

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Carmen Fonseca is an Assistant Professor at the Department of Political Studies (DEPo) at NOVA University Lisbon and a researcher at the Portuguese Institute of International Relations (IPRI-NOVA). Her academic work focuses on international relations, with a particular emphasis on Brazilian foreign policy, Portugal-Brazil relations, and EU–Latin America and Caribbean (EU–LAC) relations. She has previously served as a lecturer in the same department and remains active in public and academic debates on Lusophone diplomacy.

The opinions expressed in this blog are solely those of the author and do not reflect the views of the EULAS Network.