Date: October 30, 2017

Time: 12:15 - 13:40

Venue: Collaboration Room 1 on the 4th Floor of the Building 18, Komaba Campus, UTokyo

Language: English

Sponsor: Department of Area Studies, Graduate School of Arts and Sciences, UTokyo

This presentation deals with the past and present relations between Latin American and African countries within the context of South-South cooperation. The analysis will focus on three cases which show different strategies of an impulse-driven and to a certain extent spasmodic policy. At the bilateral level, Brazil has resorted to a cultural diplomacy, to develop a broad strategy which blossomed during Lula’s Presidency. Argentina started earlier, but without continuity and not considering Africa in its foreign policy priorities, except for the eventual case of South Africa. Cuba, although with strong difficulties, has had an ideological “rapprochement”, accompanied with technical and military cooperation. Furthermore, in the first decade of the XXIst Century interregional cooperation was strongly promoted by Brazil and South Africa, through mechanisms like ASA, SAZPC, or the Agreement between MERCOSUR and SACU. Nevertheless serious domestic political and economic crisis have put a limit to the growth and strengthening of links between these neighbors.