A política externa Argentina na aurora do século XX (1916-1955): por uma terceira posição na era dos extremos

Abstract

The following monograph is focused on a structural analysis of Argentine foreign policy between 1916 and 1955. To achieve this, the concept of "deep forces" developed by Pierre Renouvin and Jean-Baptiste Duroselle (1967) is employed to understand how foreign policy results from a historical accumulation of societal and elite influences. Based on the authors' work, three variables are highlighted: a) economic forces, b) demographic forces, and c) forces of national sentiment. Additionally, Cervo's perspective (2008) is adopted to define foreign policy as a shared outcome of various social forces, not solely restricted to decision-makers. The central question that the work seeks to answer is how shared cultural, economic, social, and political characteristics of society influenced the formulation of Argentine foreign policy in the specified period. The formulated hypothesis is that in Argentina, national-level debates occurred regarding international integration. In this sense, the deep forces help understand how international influences manifest in society through these deep forces and are interpreted by decision-makers responsible for formulating foreign policy. Moreover, it is observed that between 1916 and 1955, Argentina accumulated a historical foundation of foreign policy principles, which align with the Third Position developed during the first Peronist government. Thus, it is argued that the Third Position is not entirely Peronist in origin; instead, it is a structural product of a symbiotic relationship between the domestic and international spheres. Therefore, to comprehend this orientation, four distinct political moments are analyzed: the Radical governments (1916-1930), La Concordancia (1930-1943), the government of the GOU (Grupo de Oficiales Unidos) (1943-1946), and finally, the Peronist governments (1946-1955). Regarding methodology, an inductive approach is utilized, where questions are formulated through the examination of secondary sources (theses, books, articles, documentaries) and empirically answered using primary sources (official documents, periodicals, letters, telegrams). Given the limitations of mobility, all official documents, periodicals, letters, and digitized telegrams were accessed remotely through digital newspaper archives, periodical collections, diplomatic archives, and libraries. It is worth noting that documents not available on the internet were also provided by the Argentine Chancellery.