The Blue Amazon

Brazil, the world’s seventh largest economy and South America’s largest, is looking to expand its reach across the Atlantic: “Brazil, in particular, wants to safeguard its on- and offshore natural resources, which the navy calls the Amazônia Azul, or Blue Amazon,” write Nathan Thompson and Robert Mugah for Foreign Affairs. “These include extensive petroleum and gas reserves, as well as fishing and mining concessions within and beyond its current maritime frontiers.” For Brazil, protecting these resources is a matter of both national security and sovereignty. Brazil strives to control the Blue Amazon through the United Nations, asking for an exclusive economic zone. The nation has also created a military surveillance system to monitor the coast, increasing military involvement with a number of African countries through defense treaties and arms sales. The motivation, in part, comes from private Brazilian military contractors that want to expand their customer base. Brazil's military expenditures rank about 11th worldwide and so far do not come close to matching those of the US and other global powers. – YaleGlobal