U.S. President Barack Obama’s recent speech on America’s use of drones in the conflict with al-Qaida and its affiliates marked his administration’s first real attempt to explain a program that has generated much domestic criticism and international outcry. By contrast, few have taken notice of Brazil’s increasing use of surveillance drones, which it has been dispatching over its vast borderlands in an effort to control illegal immigration, contraband and smuggling. So far, Brazil’s drone initiative has not generated as much political controversy as Obama’s program. Nevertheless, President Dilma Rousseff’s administration must tread lightly lest it offend bordering nations that carefully guard their sovereignty.

An industrial and aerospace powerhouse, Brazil has begun to manufacture its own drones, though the country also imports some of the remotely controlled aircraft from Israel. Recently, Brazil’s drone program was placed in the international spotlight when the government announced it would deploy two unmanned aerial vehicles over Rio and Brasilia during the opening and closing of the Confederations Cup soccer tournament later this month. The drones, which are fitted with cameras, radars and sensors, will monitor the tournament in tandem with other security efforts.

Though the move garnered attention because of its domestic implications, Brazilian drones have been deployed to monitor the country’s frontiers since 2011 with less fanfare. Brazil is particularly concerned about its common border with Bolivia, which is vulnerable to organized crime. In La Paz, the Morales government has given Brazil the green light to send its reconnaissance drones over Bolivian airspace in an effort to monitor the cocaine trade. Bolivia is the world’s third-largest producer of cocaine, and officials claim that a whopping 60 percent of the country’s cocaine production is sent to Brazil. Bolivia’s top anti-drug official recently credited Brazil’s drones for enabling a series of recent blows against traffickers, and authorities report having destroyed more than 200 drug labs along the Brazilian border.

In addition to Bolivia, Brazil shares borders with nine other countries. Among them, the Paraguayan-Argentine Tri-Border Area, known to be a haven for smugglers hawking black market goods, is also of particular concern. Recently, Brazilian military officials announced that drones would reinforce overall border security measures in the region. Meanwhile, the Rousseff administration has signed an agreement with Argentina allowing for cooperation in the further development of drone technology. Concerned about terrorism in advance of the Confederations Cup, Brazil has also deployed its drones near the Uruguayan border. Indeed, the Rousseff administration is negotiating a drone “code of conduct” with Montevideo and Asuncion that would allow Brazilian drones to monitor their territories.

For the time being, neighboring countries are cooperating with Brazil on cross-border security. Knowing that drones could encourage a nationalist backlash in smaller nations, however, Brazil has been somewhat tight-lipped about its drone program. Rousseff administration officials aren’t saying whether Brazil will collaborate directly with Bolivia on eradicating illegal coca crops or cocaine labororaties. In Bolivia, Brazil must tread lightly since coca forms an integral part of local indigenous culture and tradition. Though La Paz has turned to Brazil in the fight against drug trafficking, the Morales administration is sensitive to outside interference, and in 2008 Bolivia expelled the U.S. Drug Enforcement Administration, allegedly for meddling in Bolivia’s internal affairs and supporting the political opposition.

When asked to comment on the expanding drone program, the Bolivian ambassador in Brasilia remarked, “We have a positive vision of Brazil anti-drug cooperation.” The diplomat added, however, that it was important to define the specific geographic area in which the drones would operate. Moreover, the ambassador declared somewhat cryptically that in time the drone deployment could “take on another meaning, another purpose.” Not taking any chances, and hardly wishing to experience the same fate as the DEA, Brazil has been careful to insert strict provisos within the so-called code of conduct agreements with neighboring countries such as Bolivia, Paraguay and Uruguay. Under the accords, drone flights are to be limited, and neighboring governments will be allowed to view intelligence data from the unmanned aerial vehicles.

Brazil is probably correct in pushing for an “under the radar” drone program with Paraguay. Asuncion has long been wary of Brazil, a country that enjoys significant economic influence in the Paraguayan countryside. Indeed, so-called Brasiguayos—Brazilian farmers who moved to Paraguay to cultivate soybeans—have established a huge presence across the border. In 2008, amid rural unrest in Paraguay, Brazil staged exercises along the two nations’ common border, prompting indignant calls from Asuncion. More recently, relations took a nosedive when Brazil moved to suspend Paraguay from the Mercosur trade bloc following former President Fernando Lugo’s dubious removal from power.

The drone issue, then, highlights larger diplomatic dilemmas for the Rousseff administration. A rising world power, Brazil is unsure about how to wield its newfound clout and feels uncomfortable with the notion of bullying other nations. To be sure, there are large differences between the U.S. and Brazilian drone programs. Unlike Washington, Brasilia is not deploying drones to carry out military strikes or assassinations. Nevertheless, Rousseff may face growing criticism about drone use both from domestic civil society and neighboring countries. Recently, the secretary of international relations for Brazil’s Workers’ Party protested the purchase of Israeli drones due to Israel’s occupation of the Palestinian Authority’s West Bank territory. More broadly, Brazil must be careful and diplomatic when deploying drone technology at—and beyond—its borders, lest it be perceived as an interloper in its own “backyard.”

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