On January 17, the Brazilian Army announced the selection of the Turkish small arms company Samsun Yurt Savunma Sanayi ve Ticaret to supply 200 M2HB Quick Change Barrel (QCB) machine guns of 12.7×99 mm caliber, worth $3.1 million, to the Brazilian Armed Forces. A team from the Logistics Command is scheduled to conduct a technical visit to the company in March 2025. This may be the first major contract ever signed by a Turkish defense company with the Brazilian Army.
This development reflects the desire of both countries to strengthen their bilateral relations and diversify them beyond political and economic partnerships to include cooperation in security and defense. This cooperation offers opportunities for both sides, raising questions about the key indicators of their desire for closer ties, the motivations behind it, and the potential challenges that could hinder Brazilian-Turkish cooperation.
Strong Indicators
Recent years have seen several developments indicating that Brazil and Turkey are seeking to enhance their cooperation, despite geographical distance and differences in their domestic situations. These developments include:
Intensified Political and Diplomatic Exchanges: Over the past few years, Brazil and Turkey have shown strong interest in strengthening their political and diplomatic cooperation, including high-level visits and joint meetings. For example, Brazilian President Luiz Inácio Lula da Silva met Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdoğan in Rio de Janeiro in November 2024, coinciding with Brazil’s invitation to Turkey to attend the G20 summit hosted by Brazil. Turkish Foreign Minister Mevlüt Çavuşoğlu made an official visit to Brazil in April 2022 to co-chair the fourth meeting of the High-Level Cooperation Commission, established in 2006 at the foreign ministers’ level as part of the Strategic Partnership Action Plan signed in 2010. The commission serves as a flexible consultation mechanism aimed at enhancing various aspects of bilateral relations between Turkey and Brazil. During this meeting, discussions were held on key topics such as trade, investments, sustainable development, education, culture, tourism, technical cooperation, and the defense industry. To strengthen diplomatic and consular relations, Turkey opened a consulate general in São Paulo in April 2022. As a strong indicator of the robust partnership, Brazil became Turkey’s first strategic partner in Latin America and the Caribbean in 2010, with the signing of the Strategic Partnership Action Plan.
Increased Trade Volume: In recent years, bilateral trade between the two countries has grown, reaching nearly $5 billion in 2021. Officials from both countries have agreed to continue working to increase, balance, and diversify trade and investments, including holding a meeting of the Joint Economic Committee in 2022. The main products exported from Turkey to Brazil include vehicle parts, baking soda, nuts, vegetables, cement, yarn, glassware, and refrigerators. Brazil’s main exports to Turkey include iron, wood pulp, cotton, live cattle, coffee, soybeans, tobacco, gold, and aircraft.
Activation of Security and Defense Partnerships: Military and industrial cooperation between Brazil and Turkey is a promising area that can not only enhance bilateral relations but also contribute to regional stability and global security. Both countries have advanced defense industries and a shared interest in expanding their production capabilities and military technology. As part of ongoing cooperation plans and mutual visits, regular exchanges of military delegations continue, and a military attaché was established at the Brazilian Embassy in Ankara in 2010. In the context of increasing defense cooperation, Brazil announced on March 28, 2024, its intention to evaluate and test the combat capabilities of the Kaplan MT medium tank, also known as Harimau, which was jointly developed by Turkey and Indonesia. The Brazilian Army currently uses a variety of armored vehicles, including 40 Leopard 1A1BE tanks, 220 Leopard 1A5BR tanks, and 30 M60A3 main battle tanks. On March 25, 2022, the two countries signed a defense industry cooperation agreement aimed at ensuring suitable conditions for research, development, production, and modernization in the sector, as well as exchanging researchers, expertise, technical and scientific information, and jointly produced or developed military and defense equipment. This agreement also facilitates cooperation between military technical institutions and defense industry companies, opening new horizons for these entities in both countries. As with broader bilateral relations, there is significant potential for stronger defense cooperation. For example, Brazil’s defense industry base (IDB) is an important driver of social and economic development in the country, representing 4.78% of GDP, with over 1,100 companies and generating 2.9 million direct and indirect jobs. The two countries previously signed letters of intent in 2003 to cooperate on defense matters, formalizing efforts to “develop cooperation between the defense industries of both countries, including technology transfer and joint projects.”
Convergence of Views on International Issues: Brazil and Turkey share similar views on several key international issues, including the wars in Ukraine and Gaza. Both countries agree on the need for peaceful resolutions to these conflicts and share a vision for a more stable, peaceful, and prosperous future in their regions and globally. In April 2022, Brazilian Foreign Minister Carlos Alberto França praised Turkey’s efforts to facilitate and host peace negotiations between Russia and Ukraine. In November 2024, Erdoğan commended Brazil’s principled stance against Israeli aggression, expressing gratitude for its leadership on this critical issue. He also highlighted Turkey’s initiatives at the United Nations to halt arms sales to Israel, calling for a permanent ceasefire in Palestine, uninterrupted humanitarian aid, and a just resolution to the Israeli-Palestinian conflict based on a two-state solution. Furthermore, both countries agree on the need to reform international organizations, particularly the UN Security Council, to reflect the current global balance of power, making it more representative, legitimate, and effective, especially through broader representation of developing countries. For example, Erdoğan criticized the UN’s ineffectiveness in preventing conflicts, particularly in Gaza, and emphasized the need for comprehensive reform of global governance. He expressed strong support for President Lula’s calls for reform during Brazil’s G20 presidency, describing the initiative as timely and crucial in addressing global challenges.
Shared Desire to Expand Bilateral Cooperation: Brazilian-Turkish cooperation is not limited to politics, economics, and defense, despite their importance. Bilateral cooperation also includes tourism, culture, science and technology, and technical and developmental cooperation. In April 2022, a memorandum of understanding on tourism cooperation was signed, and both countries agreed to reactivate the Joint Tourism Committee established in 1995, aiming to hold regular meetings to exchange expertise and work on joint initiatives. Additionally, a memorandum of understanding was signed to commemorate the 200th anniversary of Brazil’s independence in 2022, the 100th anniversary of the founding of the Turkish Republic in 2023, and the 170th anniversary of diplomatic relations in 2028. Officials from both countries agreed to continue negotiations on two protocols: “Cooperation in Science and Technology between the Scientific and Technological Research Council of Turkey (TUBİTAK) and the National Council for Scientific and Technological Development (CNPq) in Brazil,” and “Cooperation on Scholarship Exchanges between the Presidency for Turks Abroad and Related Communities (YTB) in Turkey and the Coordination for the Improvement of Higher Education Personnel (CAPES) in Brazil.” Regarding technical and humanitarian cooperation, both countries aim to establish a legal framework for implementing future joint projects, particularly in development assistance and disaster relief. Negotiations are ongoing for a basic agreement on technical cooperation between Turkey and Brazil, which have reached their final stages. This agreement will facilitate the development of programs, projects, and technical cooperation initiatives between the two countries, as well as with third countries selected by mutual agreement, in areas of shared interest such as agriculture, health, education, tourism, and vocational training.
Strong Motivations
Several factors are driving Brazil and Turkey to strengthen their bilateral cooperation, including:
Achieving Mutual Economic Gains: Both countries have significant economic interests that motivate them to strengthen their ties, given their economic weight. Brazil, with a population of over 213 million, is the sixth-largest country by area (over 8.5 million square kilometers) and the largest economy in Latin America, ranking ninth globally with a GDP of nearly $2 trillion. It is also one of the world’s top destinations for foreign direct investment. Turkey, with a population of 87 million, has a growing economy. Closer ties between the two countries could open up more economic opportunities to stimulate growth and diversify trade partners, especially since Brazil is Turkey’s largest trading partner in Latin America. Both countries have significant interests in the energy sector, with Brazil known for biofuels and oil production, while Turkey has sought to diversify its energy sources. In this context, both countries aim to double their bilateral trade volume from the current 5billionto5billionto10 billion in the future. Ankara also aims to increase the number of Brazilian tourists visiting Turkey to 150,000, benefiting from direct Turkish Airlines flights to São Paulo and plans to launch direct flights to Rio de Janeiro. However, economic and trade relations between Turkey and Brazil are far from reflecting their full potential, despite recent expansion.
Diversifying Global Partnerships: Both countries hold important geostrategic positions in their respective regions and are key global players. Close cooperation between Brazil and Turkey offers an important opportunity for both to diversify their international partnerships and coordinate positions in multilateral international forums. Brazil is an active member of several international organizations, including the UN, WTO, IMF, and World Bank, and is a leading regional power in Latin America and the Caribbean, spearheading regional integration efforts. Similarly, Turkey has diverse historical, political, and cultural ties with Europe, the Caucasus, Asia, the Middle East, and African countries, with increasing activity and an active foreign policy on the international stage, particularly within the UN. Turkey is also an important member of key organizations such as NATO, the OECD, and the OSCE. Both countries are members of the G20, which includes the world’s strongest economies.
Turkey’s Desire to Sign a Free Trade Agreement with Mercosur: Stronger relations between Brazil and Turkey provide an opportunity for Ankara to gain support for its international moves. For example, Turkey has a strong desire to sign a free trade agreement with the Southern Common Market (Mercosur), which includes Brazil, Argentina, Uruguay, and Paraguay, and to resume negotiations with the trade bloc for this purpose. Ankara looks to Brazil, Mercosur’s largest economy, to facilitate this process, which Brazil expressed support for in 2022. Similarly, Turkey has supported Brazil’s bid for OECD membership.
Brazil’s Role in Supporting Turkey’s Bid for BRICS Membership: In September 2024, Bloomberg reported that Turkey had formally applied to join the BRICS group, reflecting its attempt to increase its negotiating power with Western partners and diversify its trade and investment links. The recent expansion of BRICS to include Iran, Egypt, Ethiopia, and the UAE has increased the group’s global reach and geopolitical value for Turkey, especially given Ankara’s stalled efforts to join the European Union. Closer relations with Brazil, a founding member of BRICS, could enhance Turkey’s chances of joining the group. In 2023, during the BRICS summit in Johannesburg, Brazilian President Lula da Silva publicly supported Turkey’s bid to join BRICS.
Strengthening Both Countries’ Roles in Addressing International Crises: Enhanced bilateral relations could provide both countries with the opportunity to strengthen their roles as mediators in certain international crises. For example, the close ties between the two countries in 2010 contributed to the signing of the Tehran Agreement on Iran’s nuclear technology. This initiative was interpreted as reflecting both countries’ interests in countering U.S. global dominance and their desire to act as a bridge between the West and the East, as well as the North and the South. This move was seen as a sign that both countries aspire to solidify their roles as global players. Similarly, Brazilian President Lula da Silva has recently spoken about forming a group of countries to mediate a peace agreement between Russia and Ukraine. Former Foreign Minister and Special Advisor to the Presidency for International Affairs Celso Amorim has discussed this issue with Ukrainian authorities, including President Volodymyr Zelensky. Turkey, as a NATO member with historically strong ties to Russia, could play a significant role in seeking peace in Ukraine, having previously contributed to the grain deal. Turkey could be an ally to Brazil’s plans for peace in Ukraine, given the convergence of views between the two countries on this issue.
Conclusion
In summary, Brazilian-Turkish relations have seen several developments in recent years, indicating a strong desire by both countries to enhance their partnerships in various fields. These partnerships reflect the diverse opportunities they offer. However, there are also challenges that could hinder the development and elevation of these relations to higher levels. Differences in political views on several regional and international issues, including the Venezuelan crisis and climate change, could pose obstacles to closer cooperation. Additionally, increasing competition for markets and investment opportunities could lead to trade frictions and difficulties in achieving sustainable economic growth in both countries. Furthermore, as rising powers in the international system, Brazil and Turkey may face strong pressures from some international powers, potentially limiting their ambitions to assume higher global roles, especially if they compete for leadership in the Global South.
