Abstract The article examines the extent of foreign policy continuity or change and level of foreign policy achievement or underachievement during the Bolsonaro presidency. These are analysed through the lens of ‘strategic diplomacy’, a concept that considers state capacity for agile long-term oriented diplomatic action. It evaluates three areas of foreign policy, including regional integration, OECD membership, and climate negotiations. The main finding was that Bolsonaro’s foreign policies, even if achieved, were often strategic diplomacy failures and damaged Brazil’s international reputation. The article’s contribution lies in applying a new concept to provide a fresh perspective on Brazilian foreign policy.

RESUMO O caso da reforma da modernização portuária no Brasil resume os problemas que os reformadores brasileiros enfrentam. Embora a legislação da reforma tenha sido aprovada em 1993 (Lei 8.630/93), ainda existem muitos obstáculos para a plena implementação. Este artigo concentra-se em como as atitudes e ações dos negócios adiaram a reforma e demonstra como as empresas são incapazes de contribuir para a implementação da reforma devido a obstáculos institucionais e problemas de ação coletiva. Em seguida, sugere um mecanismo para superar essas dificuldades; especificamente, examina a evolução do corporativismo e o valor da construção de comunidades políticas unidas e democráticas que atendam às necessidades de cada setor. O trabalho empírico é complementado com uma combinação incomum de três abordagens teóricas para explicar a economia política da modernização institucional: economia institucional desenvolvida por Douglass North, lógica da ação coletiva elaborada por Mancur Olson e análise de redes políticas desenvolvida por Marsh e Rhodes, Jordan e Richardson.

ABSTRACT The case of port modernization reform in Brazil encapsules the problems Brazilian reformers face. Although reform legislation was passed in 1993 (Law 8.630/93), many obstacles remain for full implementation of its provision. This article focuses on how business attitudes and actions deferred reform, and demonstrates how business is unable to contribute to reform implementation because of institutional obstacles and collective action problems. It then suggests a mechanism to overcoming these difficulties; specifically, it examines the evolution of corporatism and the value of constructing democratic close-knit policy communities meeting the needs of each sector. The empirical work is complemented with an unusual combination of three theoretical approaches to explain the political economy of institutional modernization: institutional economics as developed by Douglass North, the logic of collective action as elaborated by Mancur Olson, and policy network analysis as developed by Marsh and Rhodes, Jordan and Richardson.