BRICS Leaders Meet in South Africa to Expand Geopolitical Influence
JOHANNESBURG – The leaders of the BRICS nations are set to gather in South Africa next week to discuss plans on how to transform the economic alliance into a geopolitical force that can challenge the dominance of the West. The BRICS group, which consists of Brazil, Russia, India, China, and South Africa, accounts for a quarter of the global economy.
However, Russian President Vladimir Putin will be absent from the meeting due to an international arrest warrant over alleged war crimes in Ukraine. Meanwhile, Brazil, India, China, and South Africa are divided over whether to expand the bloc to include other nations, with about 40 countries expressing interest in joining.
The summit, scheduled from August 22 to 24, will be hosted by South Africa and attended by Chinese President Xi Jinping, Brazil’s former President Luiz Inacio Lula da Silva, and Indian Prime Minister Narendra Modi. The main goal of the BRICS is to challenge the existing world order that they see as serving the interests of the United States and its rich-country allies.
The leaders have not yet revealed specific details of their discussions, but expansion is expected to be a major topic. South Africa, as the host country, has reported that approximately 40 nations have shown interest in joining, including Saudi Arabia, Argentina, and Egypt.
China, in particular, is pushing for rapid expansion of the BRICS alliance as it seeks to increase its geopolitical influence. However, Brazil is hesitant about enlargement, fearing that it could dilute the significance of the bloc. Russia is keen on bringing new members on board to counter its diplomatic isolation over Ukraine.
India, on the other hand, remains undecided on the matter. The theme of the 15th BRICS summit is “BRICS and Africa,” emphasizing the bloc’s interest in building ties with the continent. South Africa’s foreign minister, Naledi Pandor, stated that BRICS nations aim to address the needs of the majority of the world, particularly the development and inclusion of the Global South in multilateral systems.
The BRICS nations are positioning themselves as alternative development partners to the West. They seek to reform global governance systems to increase the representation of developing countries and emerging markets. Additionally, the bloc’s New Development Bank intends to de-dollarize finance and offer an alternative to established international financial institutions.
However, the New Development Bank has only approved $33 billion of loans in nearly a decade, significantly less than the World Bank’s disbursements in just one year. Sanctions on Russia, a member of the bank, have also hindered its operations.
Talk of a BRICS currency, proposed by Brazil earlier this year as an alternative to the US dollar, has been put on hold. Climate change may be discussed during the summit, as the BRICS countries are responsible for about 40% of global population and greenhouse gas emissions. They argue that wealthy nations should bear a larger burden in decarbonizing the world’s energy supply.
The BRICS summit represents an opportunity for the member nations to forge stronger alliances and assert their influence on the global stage. As the world order evolves, the BRICS group aims to reshape global governance to better serve the interests of the Global South.
(Additional reporting by Laurie Chen in Beijing, Lisandra Paraguassu in Brasilia, David Stanway in Singapore, and Carien Du Plessis in Johannesburg; Editing by Alexandra Hudson)