Page 263 - Il Mediterraneo quale elemento del Potere Marittimo - Atti 16-18 settembre 1996

THE IMPORTANCE OF THE BRAZILIAN NORTHEAST
TO THE MEDITERRANEAN THEATER IN WORLD WAR II

LUIZ P. MACEDO CARVALHO

Geostrategic position

The Mediterranean's geostrategic basin comprises not only the sea itself but
the surrounding land. Sea and land are so interdependent that the area cannot be
analyzed separately.
The Mediterranean provides a strategie penetration route from the Atlantic
to Southern Europe, the ~iddle East and the Indian Ocean, without having to cir-
cle Africa.
Despite its two-thousand-mile length from East to W est, i t is a restricted spa-
ce, comparcmentalized by successive island and peninsulas located throughout the
continuous sea corridor that runs parallel to the North African coast.
This strategie passage narrows at the Atlantic entrance, between Sicily and
Tunis and at the exit to the Black Sea and the Suez Canal.
The ltalian peninsula and Sicily, considering their geostrategic and geopoliti-
ca! aspects, divide the Mediterranean in two - East an d W est.
The Mediterranean has two gateways, one artificial and one natura!: the Suez
Canal and the strait of Gibraltar. Without denying the value of the canal, the strait
of Gibraltar is the most importane entrance, as i t represents the mai n access route
to the Mediterranean and the route of oil shipments from the Middle East to the
Western World.
One-quarter of the world's sea traffic flows through the Mediterranean.
Situated approximately between the meridians 10° W and 35 ° E and paral-
lels 35" and 46" N, the Mediterranean connects Europe to Asia and serves as a
border for the Christian and Islamic worlds. The birthplace of ancient cultures,
it contains people of different races and religions, with large populations in some
countries and very small ones in others. Civilizations that left their mark on history
flourished in the Mediterranean basin: Phoenicians, Egyptians, Jews, Carthaginians,
Greeks, Romans, Visigoths, Arabs, etc. Large or developed countries contrast with
small or underdeveloped ones in this strategie region. Desert can be found near
fertile soil. O il and gas are natura! resources of the greatest importance in the Me-
diterranean region. Facing the sharp coastline of the extreme north there is a softer
one to the south; the prominent mountains of the European continent confront
deserts and placeaus in North Africa and the Middle East, each with distinctive