Renewing the backyard? The weakening of Brazilian South America and the return of the United States to the region

Abstract

This article analyzes different ideas of region that have been together in the American continent, and emphasizes the successful regional proposal supported by Brazil in the first fifteen years of the 21st century, when several countries supported the conception of a South American regional space. However, there are difficulties for the South American project to transcend over time for several reasons. Among them, we find the changes in foreign policy derived from changes in government, the vulnerability of economies in the face of changes in the prices of commodities, the existence of alternative regional projects, and the changes in the relations between the United States and Latin America. These factors can lead to the leadership of Brazil having to renew itself to adapt to the new challenges that will arise.