BRICS

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CHARLES MCKELVEY:

"BRICS was formed by Brazil, Russia, India, China, and South Africa in 2009 and 2010 as an economic-commercial association for the purpose of developing mutually beneficial cooperation. As expressed by China’s Global Times, “From the very beginning, the BRICS countries had a broad vision, hoping to find a more inclusive and sustainable way for humans to work together.” The philosophy of BRICS is that “by adhering to openness, inclusiveness, and win-win cooperation, we can discover a wider world.”

The nations of BRICS, therefore, associate with one another not merely to ascend in the world-economy, but with the intention of forging an alternative, more just international order, with win-win cooperation that benefits all. They are developing in practice structures that circumvent the exploitative exchange relations of the capitalist world-economy, exchange relations that promote the development of some and the underdevelopment of others.

The imposition of sanctions on Russia, as a result of its military operation in Ukraine, has not led to division in BRICS; to the contrary, it has led to an increase in trade among the members of the association. The President of the International Forum of BRICS, Anand Purnima, maintained that “with the crisis in Ukraine, new alliances are forming, and the people are looking toward the East.” She is convinced that “we are living in the creation of a new world order.” Similarly, Paul Antonopoulos, a geopolitical analyst publishing on the BRICS information portal, writes that the discussions at the Summit concerning the war in Ukraine stressed that “Western sanctions against Russia necessitate the immediate need to establish an alternative global economic model and order.”

A proposal to expand BRICS was put forth several years ago, but the idea has gained force during the past year, as the capitalist world-economy makes increasingly evident its incompatibility with the interests and needs of the nations of the Global South. China has launched an extended BRICS+ ministerial meeting, occurring in the context of expressions of interests by several governments, including Argentina, Egypt, Indonesia, Kazakhstan, Nigeria, Saudi Arabia, Senegal, Thailand, and the United Arab Emirates.

The most recent BRICS Summit, the fourteenth, hosted (online) by China on June 23, 2022, adopted a final declaration that affirmed the commitment of BRICS to strengthen multilateralism. It called upon the member countries to deepen cooperation, with the intention of creating “a fair competition market environment for international economic and trade cooperation.”

BRICS is a unique forum that holds dozens of meetings prior to their annual summits, including meetings of think tanks, academics, corporate representatives, journalists, and government advisors. During China’s chairmanship of the past year, more than 70 conferences and events were held, including the fields of political security, economy, trade, finance, sustainable development, and public health."

(https://charlesmckelvey.substack.com/p/a-more-just-world-under-construction)