The loose association of Brazil, Russia, India, China and South Africa (BRICS) recently attracted a great deal of attention with the inclusion of several countries. The group has been portrayed as a political and economic alternative to the G7, but this is an exaggeration. An analysis by former security policy expert Brigadier General Walter Feichtinger.
Next year, Saudi Arabia, Iran, the United Arab Emirates (UAE), Argentina, Egypt and Ethiopia will join Brazil, Russia, India, China and South Africa in the BRICS round. This creates an economic area in which almost half of the world’s population lives and 37% of the world’s gross domestic product is generated. In comparison, the seven strongest industrialized nations (G7) fall far behind with around 30 percent. But that’s just playing with numbers, because the question is how strong this loose association actually is and what it can achieve. Many countries share a dissatisfaction with the existing world order and the dominance of the USA. The global financial system with the World Bank, the International Monetary Fund and the SWIFT payment system is also a thorn in the side of many. The lowest common denominator is probably the desired decoupling from the US dollar as the international reserve currency. Brazil’s head of state Lula da Silva, for example, is pushing for bilateral trade to be conducted in the respective national currencies. This strengthens China’s renminbi in particular as a means of payment and plays into the hands of Beijing, which sees BRICS as a further forum for expanding its influence.
“With the inclusion of Egypt, Ethiopia, Iran, Saudi Arabia, the UAE and Argentina, BRICS is becoming increasingly
heterogeneous.
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Vladimir Putin’s Russia now welcomes any format to escape its increasing isolation and counter the USA. The economic benefit is small; oil, gas and weapons are traded bilaterally anyway. India’s participation suggests that it wants to keep its geopolitical rival China in check and raise its own profile, including vis-à-vis the USA. South Africa presumably feels honored to be among the big players. It is performing a foreign policy balancing act by flirting with Russia and China without alienating the USA too much. Saudi Arabia and the UAE are two financially strong countries that are looking for foreign and defense policy alternatives to the USA. Their contributions will enable the BRICS Development Bank in Shanghai to grant more loans. Nevertheless, its potential remains far behind that of the World Bank. https://militaeraktuell.at/brasilien-will-seine-kuerassier-panzer-ersetzen/ The BRICS format is increasingly becoming a melting pot of anti-Western and dissatisfied states, but without a clear structure and strategy. The further significance of BRICS+ (new name) will depend on how strong the internal cohesion is, how the participants react to China’s dominance and what offers can be made to countries of the global South in particular. BRICS does not yet represent any real competition for the G7. On the contrary: with the inclusion of neighboring countries such as Egypt and Ethiopia, Iran and Saudi Arabia or Argentina, whose relations are tense or even hostile, BRICS is becoming increasingly heterogeneous. This does not suggest any particular foreign policy clout. However, its political weight increases with each new member, which can be of great importance in international organizations such as the UN.
Europe in particular would therefore be well advised to intensify contact with the BRICS countries and present itself as a partner on an equal footing rather than as an enemy.
