ABSTRACT
The growth of Brazilian naval interests and capabilities has been attracting increasing domestic and international attention. Brazil's emergence as a major power has its naval dimension, too, and affects still other parties in different ways. Brazil's neighbors, most particularly Argentina, have been concerned about Brazil's increasing prominence, including in the naval sphere. The continuing evolution of Brazilian naval capabilities and roles has been paralleled by changes on the international front. Complementary to Brazilian naval development is expansion and modernization of the Brazilian Air Force, with some $300 million invested so far in the first phase of a modernization program. The US Naval Mission, also the navy section of Joint Brazilian-United States Military Commission since World War II, likewise promoted close relations between the middle and upper levels of the US and Brazilian Navies. The trend toward diversification of arms supplies to Latin America was particularly pronounced in naval weaponry, in which Western European states are highly competitive, particularly Great Britain.
