Members of the BRICS (Brazil, Russia, India, China and South Africa) spoke in Johannesburg this Wednesday for the expansion of this bloc of emerging powers, which aims to strengthen its global influence.
“We are about to expand the BRICS family,” said South African President Cyril Ramaphosa, host of the meeting. “All members” support the proposal “fully”.he assured before starting the second day of this three-day summit.
At the moment it is not known whether this meeting will announce the list of the next members or whether only the foundations will be created that will allow more entry into the bloc created in 2009, which currently accounts for almost a quarter of GDP and represents 42% of gross domestic product (GDP). of the world’s population.
About 40 countries have applied for membership or expressed a wish to join, including Argentina, Cuba, Nigeria and Iran.
Brazilian President Lula da Silva said on Wednesday that “the interest shown by several countries in joining the group is a recognition of its growing relevance”.
China, the group’s economic heavyweight, reiterated its stance in favor of expansion. “The BRICS should work on multilateralism and not create small blocs. We need to integrate other countries into the BRICS family,” defended Chinese President Xi Jinping.
Moscow, which needs diplomatic allies under the sanctions for the invasion of Ukraine, and India, the group’s other economic power, also defended this position.
After maintaining silence on the first day, India eventually rallied in favor of the opening, subject to agreement on the modalities: “India fully supports the expansion of the composition of the BRICS and is happy to make progress in the towards consensus,” he said. the Prime Minister, Narendra Modi.
“Multipolar World Order”
At the summit, the BRICS reaffirmed their stance of non-alignment and their demand for a multipolar world at a time of marked international division following the Russian invasion of Ukraine.
“The war in Ukraine highlights the limitations of the Security Council. The BRICS must act as a force for understanding and cooperation,” said the Brazilian president.
Members of this alliance share a common desire to defend their place in the world.
Lula stated on the sidelines of the summit that he wants the BRICS to be placed on an equal footing with the European Union and the United States.
On Tuesday, the United States assured that it does not see the BRICS as future “geopolitical rivals” and wants to maintain its “solid relations” with Brazil, India and South Africa.
Russian President Vladimir Putin has denounced the “unlawful sanctions and illegal freezing of Russian assets” by the United States.
The Russian head of state, who has an international warrant for war crimes in Ukraine, spoke at the summit in a videotaped message. “We defend a multipolar world order,” he stressed.
Present in Johannesburg, Russian Foreign Minister Serguei Lavrov announced that his country will host the annual BRICS summit in 2024.
Own financial system
The agenda of the current BRICS summit, which represents 18% of world trade, includes looking for alternatives to the dollar in its trade transactions.
On Tuesday, Lula defended the integration of Argentina, a country in trouble because of a $44 billion debt to the IMF, defending the reduction of the “vulnerabilities” of countries in the Global South and its own “financial system”. .
“We need an international financial system that, rather than fueling inequality, helps low- and middle-income countries make structural changes”he said, again mentioning the possibility of creating a specific currency for commercial and investment transactions between the bloc’s members.
The BRICS founded the New Development Bank (NDB) in 2015 with the ambition to propose an alternative to the World Bank and the IMF.
Based in Shanghai, the institution has so far invested $30 billion in infrastructure and sustainable development projects in member states and developing economies.
Source: DN
