The Solitude of ALBA

The signing of the military cooperation agreement between Brazil and the United States constitutes a hard slap in the face for the countries of the ALBA [Bolivarian Alliance for the Peoples of Our America] and a serious setback for the fledgling UNASUR [Union of South American Nations]. While the Itamaraty [Brazil’s Ministry of External Relations] has sought to lower the tone, indicating that it is a mere agreement of “cooperation and dialogue” and that in no way does it compare to the past controversial agreement signed between Bogotá and Washington, this rapprochement will provoke deep fissures in UNASUR. All of this happens while the United States redoubles its diplomatic efforts to strengthen its military ties with its allies in Perú, Chile and Colombia. The isolation of the ALBA countries is becoming pathetic.

Less than a year ago in July 2009, Colombia and the United States signed a military cooperation that unleashed an unprecedented storm in the hemisphere. “They have plans to invade us (The United States) and they are occupying our left flank from the north, beyond Guajira (Colombia), Cartagena in the Caribbean, to the south, down there in the (river) Orinoco,” declared Chavez upon finding out about the existence of the agreement. Meanwhile Ecuador’s Minister of Security, Miguel Carvajal, declared that you cannot rule out “an escalation of military order” between Colombia and Ecuador. The anti-imperialist speeches of the 1960s sounded out with force, while the consolations and protests within UNASUR were not heard across the rest of the continent. Venezuela, for its part, looked to stir the flames by halting trade with Colombia and freezing all relations with its neighbor to the south.

The military agreement signed by Brazil can lead to, among other things, the technological cooperation in security, logistic support, investigation and parameters arms dealing. There is no doubt that this country, true to its pragmatic tradition in foreign policy, signed the agreement with the idea that its growing military industries will break into the gigantic North American market, that companies like Embrear will be able to make deals without precedents with the U.S. Department of Defense. For these reasons, Pentagon sources have said that the long-sought-after military agreement is “a big deal” and will allow the United States to extend military relations in a significant manner.

It is true that the military agreement signed by Brazil, which is different from the past agreement between Washington and Bogotá, does not contemplate the utilization of bases nor the permanent presence of military personnel in its territory. One should note, however, that the two military pacts are a Defense Cooperation Agreement (DCA) and are very similar in nature and in concept. With this, Brazil has abandoned the nations of ALBA.