On June 16, the Brazilian Committee on Foreign Relations and National Defense (CREDN, in Portuguese) of the Chamber of Deputies approved a Research, Development, Testing, and Evaluation (RDT&E) project agreement, between Brazil and the United States.
Brazilian President Jair Bolsonaro signed the RDT&E agreement in March 2019. The agreement was then sent to Congress in August 2020.
The purpose of the agreement is to define parameters for conducting and managing RDT&E activities for project agreements carried out by the Brazilian Ministry of Defense and the U.S. Department of Defense.
By facilitating the financing of research and development in the military field, the RDT&E agreement will contribute to establishing a new level of relationship between the armed forces of both countries.
The Brazilian government hopes to expand access to the U.S. market in the area of defense. The United States has signed similar agreements or memoranda of understanding with traditional partners in the defense area, such as Germany, France, India, Italy, Israel, Singapore, and Sweden, among others.
The agreement
The RDT&E agreement is an initial step for Brazil and the United States to develop joint projects in the area of defense. Each design agreement that may be developed by the parties shall be executed in accordance with its terms, as well as their respective national laws and regulations.
The agreement may expand access of the defense industrial base to the American market, as well as the formalization of other pacts in the defense sector, reducing bureaucratic processes in the trade of products between Brazil and the United States.