Politics

BRICS Summit: A diplomatic coup for Putin but light on detail

The number and seniority of the participants that showed up in Kazan helped Putin show that the West’s attempts to portray Russia as a pariah have largely failed

AFP

Russia's President Vladimir Putin delivers a speech during a festive reception of the BRICS summit in Kazan on October 23, 2024.

BRICS Summit: A diplomatic coup for Putin but light on detail

Omer Onhon

last update on 26 Oct 2024

Russian President Vladimir Putin caught the headlines this week as he hosted the leaders of 36 other nations at this year’s BRICS summit, held in Kazan on the banks of the Volga River.

BRICS is a grouping made up of the initials of the founding states: Brazil, Russia, India, and China, with South Africa joining shortly after. Newer members include Egypt, Ethiopia, Iran, and the United Arab Emirates. Alongside the members, 28 other countries participated as invitees. Most were represented by heads of state. Notable participants included President Recep Tayyip Erdoğan of Turkey, Palestinian Authority President Mahmoud Abbas, and UN Secretary-General Antonio Guterres. Turkey was the only NATO country at the summit.

The participants discussed a wide range of issues and projects—from the world’s financial architecture to an Indian-sponsored scheme to protect big cats and issued a communiqué at the conclusion that was short on detail.

Nonetheless, the BRICS 2024 Summit can be seen as a major diplomatic achievement for the host. It was the largest foreign policy event held in Russia since it invaded Ukraine in February 2022. The number and seniority of the participants help Putin show that the West’s attempts to portray Russia as a pariah are inaccurate. For its part, the Ukrainian government took issue with the UN Secretary-General’s agreement to attend and meet Putin, who Kyiv described as a “war criminal”, adding that this had damaged the UN’s reputation.

Understanding BRICS

Increasingly influential in world affairs, to understand what BRICS is, it helps to first understand what BRICS is not. Its founding manifesto lists some general principles, but there is no organisational chart, permanent secretariat, or headquarters. In a system of rotating presidency, a member country assumes the presidency for a year, does the organisational and administrative work, hosts the summit, and then hands over the presidency to the next. This year, Russia will hand over to Brazil.

AFP — Indian Prime Minister Narendra Modi, Russian President Vladimir Putin and Chinese President Xi Jinping attend a family photo during the BRICS summit in Kazan on October 23, 2024.

Although Russia, China, and India have some of the world's most powerful armies, BRICS is not a military alliance. Rather, it is a grouping of emerging market economies and what is often referred to as the global south.

It aims to present an alternative to the international order shaped by the US-led West. Putin and Chinese President Xi Jinping see a new multipolar world order being formed, and Putin sees BRICS as part of that. He wants to establish a new international financial system in which the US dollar and the international SWIFT banking system cannot be “weaponised” in global trade and financial transactions.

Putin called on member states to trade in local currencies and railed against sanctions imposed on Russia by the West for its invasion of Ukraine. He said sanctions should be approved by the UN Security Council (UNSC), even though, as a permanent member of the UNSC with a veto, he would have vetoed sanctions against Moscow.

Membership criteria

Membership criteria, agreed at last year’s BRICS Summit in Johannesburg, states that would-be BRICS members must have diplomatic and friendly relations with all current members and must not impose non-UNSC sanctions on them.

BRICS members account for about 45% of the world's population, 35% of its GDP, and 30% of its oil output

BRICS members want to reform the United Nations, including its Security Council, but Russia and China are two of the five permanent UNSC members, so they are less keen to dilute their own position of influence as it stands.

Analysts often debate whether BRICS is anti-Western or not. Russia and China certainly have their rivalries with the United States on several fronts, and Iran considers itself targeted by the West, with Washington and Tel Aviv the main drivers. Yet, while other members may have their grievances, they are still some way from being part of an anti-American, anti-Western alliance. This could be said of Brazil, India, South Africa, Egypt, the UAE, and Ethiopia.

For its part, the West has downplayed BRICS. White House Press Secretary Karine Jean-Pierre said a few days ago that the US does not see it as evolving into a geopolitical rival—a sentiment echoed by other Western officials.

The nine BRICS members have a population of around 3.5 billion (about 45% of the world's population) and 35% of the global gross domestic product (GDP). With the addition of Iran and the UAE, BRICS now account for 30% of global oil output. Yet the bigger question is whether BRICS members want to, or will be able to, develop common policies and act as one—like the European Union, for instance.

AFP — The presidents of Egypt, South Africa, China, Russia, UAE, and Iran, the prime ministers of Ethiopia and India and Brazil's foreign minister pose for a family photo during the BRICS summit in Kazan on October 23, 2024.

The BRICS New Development Bank (NDB) appeals to the global south and emerging economies. China regards it as a way of increasing its influence. Since 2016, the NDB has provided $32bn for 96 infrastructure projects in emerging nations, such as roads, bridges, railways, and water systems.

Problems with expansion

In January of this year, BRICS expanded when Egypt, Iran, the UAE, and Ethiopia joined. Argentina was invited but declined. Saudi Arabia reportedly accepted but has not yet joined owing to procedural delays. It is understood that some states, such as Brazil and India, are less keen on expanding further. Among their concerns is that too many members make decision-making problematic.

Russia has suggested an alternative enlargement model, introducing 'partner states'. Although no country was named as a prospective partner state, it is understood that Algeria, Indonesia, Kazakhstan, Malaysia, Nigeria, Turkey, Uganda, Uzbekistan and Vietnam might be considered for this status.

The future of BRICS will depend on whether members can put aside their differences on issues of divergence—of which are plenty—and find common ground. While BRICS may register some achievements in the economic sphere, such as by encouraging trade in local currencies and project finance, it will likely serve more as a forum to exchange views, at least for the immediate future.

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