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- the 2001 attacks on the United States resulted in a significant downgrading ofLatin American relations in US foreign policy, with the exceptions of Mexicoand Colombia. At the same time, this event and its consequences created theopportunity for greater activism by intermediate states in international affairs,as partners in global governance.- the growing ideological appeal of Hugo Chavez’s Venezuela and the acquisitionof greater military capabilities by Venezuela. This was accompanied by thewidespread resurgence of left politics and politicians in the region: thesimultaneous election of Gutierrez in Ecuador and Evo Morales in Bolivia in2006 affecting the balance of reformism and radicalism in the region.- the involvement of offshore actors, such as China and Iran, becoming majortrading partners, China far more so than Iran, influencing political andinternational relations dynamics in the region. Not least was China’s significantcontribution to Brazil’s economic growth through a burgeoning traderelationship. In 2009, for example, it was reported that China had surpassed theUS to become Brazil’s largest trading partner. Total trade between Brazil andChina reached US$3.2bn in April that year. 569- The decline of Argentina’s economic strength and influence in the region.Arguably, each of these factors on their own, and undoubtedly all taken together,served to provide a motivation for Brazil to shore up its international position, byadopting a more assertive stance in international politics, potentially strengtheningits military apparatus, and strengthening its partnerships with likeminded states.Brazil’s domestic economic situation was stabilised by Cardoso’s Plano Real.However, economic growth had stagnated below 2% for the duration of his tenure.The election of Luiz Inacio Lula da Silva and the Workers’ Party in 2002 signalledfor many a potentially radical change, both in Brazil’s economic and internationalpolicies. Indeed, Lula’s electoral campaign was predicated on the concept of‘Change’, marking a departure from the policies of Cardoso. Most analyses highlightBrazil’s foreign policy approach of the Lula years as a broad continuation of Brazil’s569 Malcolm Moore, “China overtakes the US as Brazil’s largest trading partner”, in TheTelegraph, 9 May, 2009. Accessed online at:http://www.telegraph.co.uk/finance/economics/5296515/China-overtakes-the-US-as-Brazils-largest-trading-partner.html on 26 June, 2011.224