India is expanding its presence in the region. South and Central America hope this will diversify their cooperation with major geopolitical powers.
For the announcement, Brazil's semi-state oil company Petrobras chose the setting carefully. At the beginning of February, Claudio Romeo Schlosser, director responsible for logistics, marketing and markets at Petrobras, told an energy forum in Rio de Janeiro: "We are expanding our customer base internationally. Until now, it was very concentrated in China." He then added: "We will sign a contract with the Indian state company for the supply of 24 million barrels of oil."
So far, the volume of supplies to India has been relatively low, but with this agreement with the country's second-largest refinery, that is expected to change in the medium term. Brazil's partner in this operation will be the Indian state-owned company Bharat Petroleum. The fact that Brazil and India are members of the BRICS bloc and often share similar positions will likely boost this partnership even further.
Brazil bets on diversification
With this public statement, Brazil reinforces India’s growing importance amid the global geopolitical reconfiguration, just weeks after it formally rejected China’s New Silk Road project. India, with a population of about 1.4 billion, has been slowly but steadily increasing its presence in Latin America, from the Rio Grande in the north to Tierra del Fuego in the south.
In the context of current geopolitical conflicts, India is perceived as an attractive partner for the region, as New Delhi is seen as an independent and mostly neutral player in the competition between the United States, Russia and China.
Argentina also looks towards India
Something similar is happening in Argentina. In January, the Argentine state-owned company YPF signed a memorandum of understanding with three Indian companies to export up to ten million tons of liquefied natural gas (LNG) per year.
Horacio Marín, CEO of YPF, is banking on future Asian clients in its expansion plans: "We are convinced that Argentina has the opportunity to become an energy exporter and achieve the sector's goal of generating revenues of 30 billion dollars in the next decade." The agreement between Argentina and India also includes cooperation in the exploration and production of lithium.
India opts for "strategic autonomy"
"India's foreign policy has always been marked by a policy of non-alignment," explains Sabrina Olivera, coordinator of the working group on South Asia at the Argentine Council for International Relations (CARI), in an interview with DW .
Over time, this stance evolved into what is now known as “strategic autonomy,” Olivera notes: “This means that India maintains relations with as many actors as possible without tying itself down or entering into formal alliances.” Thus, India participates in all negotiations on global issues, but without military commitments.
Although India's presence in Latin America is still small compared to the United States, China or Europe, this also means that the region represents enormous growth potential for India. New Delhi is seeking to strengthen its ties in the political, economic and cultural spheres. One example of this was the shipment of medicines to Cuba after devastating hurricanes, which generated a positive reaction in the Caribbean press.
In Chile, a country rich in natural resources, Indian ambassador Abhilasha Joshi announced: "For us, Chile is a starting point towards the rest of Latin America."
India enjoys a "vote of confidence" as a democracy
The starting point for this rapprochement dates back to the visit of Indian Foreign Minister Subrahmanyam Jaishankar to Panama two years ago. According to local media, it was the first visit by an Indian foreign minister in six decades. Shortly afterwards, Jaishankar declared: "Since Prime Minister Modi assumed power, our relations with Latin America and the Caribbean have taken a new direction."
According to the Dialogue Policy portal, trade between India and Latin America will reach $40 billion by 2023. Brazil, Mexico, Argentina, Colombia and Peru are its main trading partners in the region.
India imports mainly raw materials and exports cars and auto parts, pharmaceuticals and textiles. Over the past ten years, trade between the two regions has grown by 145%, although it is still lower than that of China, whose trade with the region amounts to 480 billion dollars.
"India is aware that it does not have the same material and military resources as China. However, it is trying to reduce China's advantage in the region," says South Asia expert Sabrina Olivera. "The fact that India is a democracy gives it an advantage over China and grants it a vote of confidence in Latin America, where most countries have democratic regimes."
