Demanding a Seat at The Table: Brazil’s and South Africa’s Role Conception in their Quest for Permanent Seats at the United Nations Security Council

Abstract: In a changing world order, emerging middle powers from the global South may seek new positions in international societies. Using the United Nations as an international society, this thesis aims to investigate what roles the emerging middle powers, Brazil and South Africa, enact in pursuing permanent seats at the Security Council. This research conducts a qualitative text analysis using official data from 2010-2019 to explore Brazil’s and South Africa’s relationship with the United Nations and their calls for reform of the Security Council. The English School of international relations is used to understand the international environment and state behavior, and role theory is applied to analyze states’ foreign policy and their role conception in international relations. This study shows that while Brazil and South Africa are reformists, they are strong supporters of multilateralism and international society is fundamental for their ability to influence global order. Furthermore, both Brazil and South Africa adopt roles connected to their interests as middle powers and advocates for the global South, but these are embodied differently. Brazil’s arguments are more rational and global, focusing on performance, resources, and capabilities, while South Africa's arguments emphasize fairness, morality, and justice for Africa.