The op-ed, entitled "Primavera Árabe e inverno no Itamaraty" (Arab Spring: Winter at Brazil's foreign ministry) was written by Marcelo Coutinho. He is a professor of international relations at the Federal University of Rio de Janeiro. The article appeared in the August 26, 2012 issue of Folha.
Professor Coutinho argues that Brazil's foreign ministry made mistake after mistake in the way it dealt with the Arab Spring. He begins by writing: "Our diplomats were unable to handle the situation, did not support democratic movements, and lost the ground it gained over decades in the Middle East."
Specifically, he criticizes Brazil for siding with dictators, being hesitant in dealing with events in Tunisia and Egypt, opposing UN involvement in Libya, and advocating what he calls a failed policy of non-intervention. He believes that this pattern of poor decisions during an unprecedented time of rapid change in the Middle East has tarnished Brazil's reputation as an advocate for democracy and has dealt a severe blow to its credibility in the area.
He closes with this observation: "The foreign ministry of Brazil stumbled badly. In a hundred years, the history books will speak of events that changed a core part of the world. Brazil will appear in a footnote on the wrong side of these transformations."
Source: "Brazil Portal"
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