BRAZIL-SUB-SAHARAN AFRICA RELATIONS IN THE CONTEXT OF THE INTELLIGENCE ACTIVITY

Abstract

This study aims at examining the relations between Brazil and the Sub-Saharan African States from the point of view of the Intelligence Activity and its position in the decision-making process of a specific and relevant point of the Brazilian foreign policy: the African policy. Sub-Saharan Africa is a broad strategic space open to Brazilian economic and political projection and in which the Intelligence Activity is geared towards acting in search of opportunities and detection of threats. The Portuguese-speaking African countries exemplify the potential and obstacles regarding these relations. We discuss the characteristics of Africa’s contemporary reality and the foreign interests acting there. We describe the basic lines of the Brazilian policy for Africa and the role of the African intelligence services in the state security apparatus. Finally, we seek to conceptualize ABIN attributions and competencies within Afro-Brazilian relations.