The defense area constitutes one of the main challenges of Brazilian foreign policy in the coming years. The sector will require greater attention from the country in light of the United States' military action in Venezuela and an international situation of increasing conflicts. The warning comes from Audo Faleiro, deputy chief advisor of the Special Advisor to the President of the Republic. “The perception of vulnerability with American military action, especially in the region, has created, I think, another urgency for us to deal with this challenge”, said the advisor at the 2nd National Conference on Foreign Policy and International Insertion of Brazil, held at the Federal University of ABC, in São Bernardo do Campo (SP), this week. Related news: Rare earths: "Brazil does not give up its sovereignty", says Lula. Rare earths, strategic and critical minerals: understand the differences. Faleiro stressed, however, that he does not see any immediate threat against Brazilian oil reserves or the national nuclear program. “I do not see today an objective threat to Brazil, as happened in Venezuela, this military action that was effectively to control Venezuela’s oil reserves.” The advisor highlighted, however, that Brazil will need to make a decision whether or not to invest in the defense sector. "We live with a permanent dilemma in Brazilian society, because some think that Brazil is a peaceful country, so no one will attack us, and we wouldn't need defense. Others think it's not worth investing in defense, because the military asymmetry is so great that nothing we can invest will reduce this gap", he said. According to the advisor, asymmetric conflicts, such as that between the United States and Iran, showed, however, a likely path forward in the face of the dilemma. "The strongest does not always win, as long as you have a well-designed deterrent capacity. I think it is essential to think about our situation in terms of defense, Brazil is very vulnerable, that is evident", he highlighted. Critical minerals and rare earths In addition to the defense sector, the deputy chief advisor listed five other challenges that Brazil will have to face in the area of foreign policy in the coming years. According to Faleiro, critical minerals and rare earths, digital sovereignty, transnational organized crime, regional integration and integration with African countries will require special care until at least 2030.  Regarding critical minerals and rare earths, Faleiro assessed that the entire regulatory framework for the sector is very outdated. He highlighted, however, that there is an effort by the current administration to create a National Critical Minerals Council linked to the Presidency of the Republic. “I think this is an area in which we will need a lot of investment in developing strategies so that Brazil can take control of this special status that it has, of being the second largest holder of critical minerals”, he stated. Organized crime Regarding the issue of transnational organized crime, Faleiro said that the country must be careful so that the matter is not manipulated for political purposes. "The events of recent weeks show how the issue can be manipulated for political purposes. We understood this a little at the beginning of the mandate and that was why Brazil competed for and won the general directorship of Interpol. Today, the person who heads Interpol is a Brazilian delegate, from the Federal Police", he said.  According to the advisor, Brazil will need to “get off the defensive” on this issue and propose an agenda to combat organized crime for Latin America. “I think that, even those countries that today orbit more around the new American administration, would have difficulty not working on an agenda to combat organized crime in the region”, he highlighted. Digital sovereignty Regarding digital sovereignty, the advisor said that the country will need to hurry because it is behind. “Brazil was left out of the world when this topic evolved more quickly. We arrived, we had missed the point of this discussion and now we will need major investment on this front too”. Integration Latin America and Africa In addition to these four themes, Faleiro also mentioned the situation of Brazilian integration with Latin America and the Caribbean. In his assessment, the Brazilian stance will be, given the fragmentation in the region, to do what is possible.    “There are two factors that greatly complicated the situation of regional integration. First, the election of [Javier] Milei, in Argentina and, second, the result of the electoral process in Venezuela in 2024, which created a situation of crossed veto in the region and led to the paralysis of our attempt to rebuild Unasur [União de Nações Sul-Americanas] and Celac itself [Community of Latin American and Caribbean States] which today cannot articulate itself for practically anything”. In relation to African countries, the advisor assessed that Brazil is seen with historical sympathy, created by Brazilian actions in the first two terms of President Luiz Inácio Lula da Silva. But other countries are currently more advanced in this relationship. “Now after ten years of abandonment to Africa, we find Africa populated by other actors, with much more effective instruments for carrying out foreign policy. I think we will need to rethink several of these instruments that we abandoned, especially the issue of cooperation”. BRICS Audo Faleiro also commented on the Brics, a bloc made up of Brazil, Russia, India, China, South Africa, Saudi Arabia, Indonesia, Egypt, United Arab Emirates, Ethiopia and Iran. According to him, the increase in the number of members, in 2023, was a mistake and currently causes the group to freeze. “I think it was a mistake. Today the Brics are paralyzed, because there is a conflict between countries in the group [Iran and the United Arab Emirates], attacking each other militarily. To date, you have not seen a statement from the BRICS on the conflict in the Middle East, because it is not possible to reach consensus within the group. So, I think this was a mistake, I don’t know if it’s possible to reverse it, probably not.”