Nationalizing Avibras means regaining lost sovereignty

A hearing on Bill 2957/24 has reignited the debate over the state’s role in the defense sector and Brazil’s position amid global geopolitical disputes

Originally published in Le Monde Diplomatique

By Laura Ludovico

This Wednesday, October 15, the Chamber of Deputies held a public hearing on Bill No. 2957/24, which proposes the expropriation, for public utility, of Avibras Indústria Aeroespacial S.A., Brazil's largest private defense company. If approved, the measure would allow the company to become state-owned, subject to fair and prior compensation, to serve national strategic interests.

The bill, authored by Congressman Guilherme Boulos (Psol-SP), justifies the initiative as essential for consolidating national sovereignty and defense. More than a specific proposal, the project reflects two central themes for contemporary Brazil: the redefinition of its security policy and the pursuit of greater economic and technological autonomy.

Although the country is recognized as an agricultural powerhouse and a relevant diplomatic actor, the defense sector remains on the margins of the national agenda. Avibras, responsible for producing the Astros rocket launch systems and the AV-TM 300 tactical cruise missile, is a key player in this scenario. Its potential nationalization could transform a struggling asset into a hub of strategic innovation, capable of boosting the country's industrial and technological development.

However, the inevitable question lingers: why now? Does Brazil intend to finance wars, or simply to avoid being held hostage by them?

To understand the context, we need to go back to 2022, when Avibras entered its third bankruptcy protection. The pandemic disrupted global supply chains and shifted budgetary priorities, leading to contract suspensions and a sharp drop in exports. Even so, the company continued to serve the Brazilian Armed Forces and export to countries in the Middle East, Asia, and Latin America. Its collapse thus represented a strategic loss for the State.

In 2023, foreign giants such as Germany's Rheinmetall and the Emirati Edge Group expressed interest in acquiring the company – which raised alarms about Brazil's vulnerability to international coveting of its technological capital. Avibras, despite its financial fragility, was a golden asset waiting to be captured. And the only country that seemed not to realize this was Brazil itself.

In July 2023, the bankruptcy protection plan was approved. However, sale attempts failed one after another: in April 2024, negotiations with Australia's Defendtex did not progress; in June, the Ministry of Defense confirmed interest from a Chinese investor, who also backed out; in October, the company sought a Brazilian buyer, who gave up in December. In early 2025, new talks emerged with a Saudi company, and in May, creditor Brasil Crédito announced its intention to buy, still unresolved.

In this decision-making vacuum, another historical problem emerges: the fragility of the national defense sector. In 2025, the government was again criticized by unionists from São José dos Campos, who denounced the lack of effective policies to protect the country's strategic industry amidst tensions and external interference, especially from the United States.

The discussion on nationalizing Avibras, therefore, does not take place in a political vacuum. The world is experiencing a new phase of geopolitical reconfiguration, marked by the rise of blocs like BRICS+ and the shifting axis of global power. In this scenario, national defense and sovereignty become indispensable tools for international projection. For a country seeking leadership in the Global South, protecting its strategic sectors is not only a military matter, but also a diplomatic one: it ensures that its foreign policy of mediation and cooperation is not weakened by technological dependencies or industrial vulnerabilities.

Brazil, historically known for its conciliatory diplomacy and commitment to multilateralism, now faces a dilemma: remain a neutral mediator or assert itself as an autonomous power capable of defending its own strategic interests. The nationalization of Avibras can be seen as a symbolic gesture of this transition – a move that combines diplomatic tradition with the need to consolidate material power consistent with the political influence the country intends to wield.

It is in this context that Boulos's bill gains relevance. Published in 2024 and now under debate in the Chamber, it reopens a discussion that transcends the economic field and touches the core of national sovereignty.

Credit: Ministry of Defense/Wikimedia

The nationalization of Avibras is not just a dispute over ownership – it is a dispute over autonomy. It is deciding whether Brazil will continue selling its technological potential to foreign powers or whether it will have the courage to invest in it as part of its strategic future. In times of global uncertainty, protecting what is national does not mean isolation: it means being prepared to compete, cooperate, and survive in a world that no longer forgives naivety.

After the hearing: the weight of the crisis and the workers' appeal

During the hearing, the Avibras crisis was detailed in a timeline that highlights the scale of the problem. In March 2022, the company filed for bankruptcy protection alleging a debt of R$ 600 million. In September of the same year, workers went on strike due to salary arrears, a movement that has now lasted over 31 months, making it one of the longest strikes in the history of Brazilian trade unionism.

The president of the Metalworkers' Union of São José dos Campos, Herbert Claros Weller, recalled that this is Avibras's third major crisis and demanded a concrete stance from the federal government. He argued that the company should be nationalized under workers' control and that the State should take responsibility for overdue wages: "Who holds the power of the pen? Who is the president of the Republic? It's Lula. And we think the government has to resolve this situation." "We need to know what contribution the government will make, because at this moment the priority is to pay every cent owed to each worker. For sovereignty and the guarantee of rights: nationalization of Avibras now!", added Weller.

Boulos, who mediated the hearing, reiterated that nationalizing the company is a way to protect national sovereignty. He mentioned the recent case of Donald Trump's tariff hikes against Brazil, pointing out that measures like that reinforce the importance of strengthening internal strategic sectors. For the congressman, public investment in defense and military technological innovation is also a political message: Brazil needs to assert itself as a country capable of producing and protecting what is its own.

Laura Ludovico is a lawyer specializing in international law and Director of Projects and Research at the Brics Tech Forum.