The bloc, which has long been ignored by the West, has thrown a strong challenge to the US and its allies in Europe! In a sense, the 16th BRICS Summit, held in Kazan on October 22-24, 2024, helped Russia to make a diplomatic gain! Incidentally, the BRICS family has increased this year as Ethiopia, Egypt, Iran and the United Arab Emirates (UAE) have joined this platform of the Global South as full members during Moscow’s Presidency. Saudi Arabia is eager to join the bloc, too!

The presence of representatives of more than 30 nations, including Heads of State of BRICS member countries, in Kazan allowed Russian President Vladimir Vladimirovich Putin to prove that the West failed to isolate the Kremlin by imposing economic sanctions. During the three-day Summit, BRICS members not only called for a ceasefire in Gaza, but also condemned Israel for committing genocide in Palestine and for launching attacks on Lebanon, as well! They further raised their voice against the West’s unilateral coercive measures and sanctions, calling them unlawful. According to BRICS, these measures have not only damaged the global economy, but also hindered the sustainable development of a number of countries. In a statement, BRICS has mentioned that several countries are interested in joining this bloc because of its agendas, including equal treatment (by other countries), consensus, a fair economic and trade system, and other principles.

Currently, BRICS represents nearly 40% of the global population, accounting of a quarter of the Global GDP. The inclusion of three of the world’s largest oil producing nations (Iran, the UAE and potentially Saudi Arabia) in the bloc has undoubtedly increased the importance of BRICS on the global stage. With this, the influence of the Global South in International Politics also increased.

BRICS has decided to strengthen its New Development Bank in an attempt to counter the influence of the World Bank (WB) and International Monetary Fund (IMF). One of the goals of the BRICS (especially Russia and China) is to reduce the dominance and importance of the US Dollar in international trade transactions and to develop alternative mechanisms with regional currencies. For India, the biggest achievement in Kazan was Prime Minister Narendra Modi‘s meeting with Chinese President Xi Jinping on the sidelines of BRICS Summit as the two leaders agreed to end the conflict along the Line of Actual Control (LAC) in eastern Ladakh.

However, some issues still remain unresolved! No one knows whether it would be possible to undermine the dominance of the US Dollar in global trade transactions. Experts believe that it is not easy to maintain a balance in the bloc due to the increasing number of members and their different economic strength and geopolitical interests. In spite of these issues, Russia and China are keen to develop the BRICS as the driver of the global economy, replacing the G7 (and the US).

India has to be careful that no country’s own interests prevail during the inclusion of new member countries in the coming days. All the BRICS members, including India, have strategic ties with the Western countries. Hence, it is expected that no one would want those relationships to deteriorate for their own sake.

It seems that maintaining a balance would be the key to the effectiveness of this bloc.

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Published by Koushik Das

Koushik Das (born on May 16, 1976 in Kolkata) is a career journalist. Based in the Indian capital of New Delhi, Koushik writes mainly about foreign policies and current geopolitical issues, and rarely about other topics. His own political ideas are highly influenced by Antonio Gramsci, Louis Althusser, Michel Foucault, Michael Oakeshott and others. English philosopher and political theorist Oakeshott (Dec 11, 1901-Dec 19, 1990) says that “in political activity, men sail a boundless and bottomless sea. There is neither harbour for shelter nor floor for anchorage, neither starting-place, nor appointed destination. But we have to keep afloat”. (Rationalism in Politics, 1962) As a student of Political Science, Koushik loves to share his views on issues, which have great impacts on his thought process (and also on India, South Asia and of course on the global community), with his readers through his website – Boundless Ocean of Politics. By doing so, he tries to keep himself afloat. You will find some of his articles in https://inserbia.info/today/ (https://inserbia.info/today/author/kou_das13_i/), as he has been trying to assess the global geopolitics since 2003. You can also mail him at kousdas@gmail.com View all posts by Koushik Das