Abstract
Thepaper examines Brazilian diplomatic sources related to president Jânio da Silva Quadros’ policy regarding the Cuban question, in 1961. The documentation was consulted in the archives of the Ministry of Foreign Affairs, based in Brasília. These diplomatic communications provide perceptions and interpretations about the making of Brazilian foreign policy, and about the relations between Brazilians, Americans, Cubans, and Soviets. Under the perspective of the so-called Independent Foreign Policy, the main conclusion of the article suggests that Jânio Quadros’ administration formulated and implemented a principled foreign policy in relation to the Cuban question. Along these lines, and in a context of increasing East-West competition, there was an important effort to try to maintain and resolve mainly within the inter-American system the differences between the governments of Washington and Havana. In retrospect, the sources consulted allow to infer that such political and diplomatic diligence was recognized and valued by most actors with ties to and interests in the matter in question - including in domestic terms. The research was conducted under the theoretical-methodological perspective of international history and foreign policy analysis.
Keywords
Jânio Quadros; Independent Foreign Policy; Latin America’s Cold War