NEWTOWN, Conn. -- Although the country faces few external threats, its military plays an important role in Brazilian society. Brazilian troops guard the 10,492-mile-long border that it shares with 10 other South American nations. The border is popular with drug traffickers and other criminal groups that use its dense jungle covering to hide from law enforcement. Brazilian gangs battle with each other, outside gangs, and governments to control the drug trade in the region, adding to the region's violence.
The Brazilian military also plays a role in maintaining law and order within the country. For example, in early 2017, a rash of prison escapes and deaths highlighted severe overcrowding and understaffing at Brazil's prisons. The military stepped in to provide the extra manpower needed to maintain order in the country's prison systems. In July 2017, the military was deployed to Rio de Janeiro to assist police combat rising violence brought on by drug trafficking and gangs. By February 2018, the military was shifted from an assistance role to being in command of security in the state.
Brazil's military also plays an important role in international peacekeeping operations, particularly in Haiti under the MINUTSAH mission to that nation after the 2004 earthquake. However, there is a push within Brazil to take a less active role in international peacekeeping missions. As such, Brazil has a focus on improving the interoperability of its armed forces with allied nations.
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