RELATIONS BETWEEN THE NORTHEAST CONSORTIUM AND CHINA

This work is about the creation of the Interstate Consortium for Sustainable Development of the Northeast in 2019, the Northeast Consortium, established by the initiative of the Governors of the Northeast States of Brazil (Paraíba, Bahia, Pernambuco, Rio Grande do Norte, Ceará, Maranhão, Piauí, Alagoas and Sergipe) and on the practices of paradiplomacy. The objective of our study is to analyze the internationalization policies of the Northeast Consortium, emphasizing the case of relations with China. In characterizing the concept of paradiplomacy, we will list a series of international cooperation practices, based on political and economic aspects. Our hypothesize is that the relationship between the Consortium and China was essential for the consolidation of the group's paradiplomacy practice. This exploratory research is characterized by being a case study using qualitative methodology, in the analysis of official documentary sources and media, as well as quantitative methodology, by using statistical data (foreign trade and foreign investments) and secondary sources. We used sources from analyses/databases of Banco do Nordeste (BNB), Brazilian Institute of Geography and Statistics (IBGE), Fundação Getúlio Vargas (FGV), Comex Stat, Institute of Applied Economic Research (IPEA), and Think Tanks. As results found, we observed an assertive action of the Northeast Consortium in relations with China, which can be verified in the political agenda, in relation to the period of the Covid-19 pandemic, and in economic paradiplomacy in the observation of the increase in Foreign Direct Investment (FDI), foreign trade in the region and implementation of development projects. In the final remarks, we point out our vision for the improvement of the Consortium's paradiplomacy practices.