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Time of India
5 days ago
- Business
- Time of India
BRICS emerges as a strong geopolitical and geoeconomic entity
S D Pradhan has served as chairman of India's Joint Intelligence Committee. He has also been the country's deputy national security adviser. He was chairman of the Task Force on Intelligence Mechanism (2008-2010), which was constituted to review the functioning of the intelligence agencies. He has taught at the departments of defence studies and history at the Punjabi University, Patiala. He was also a visiting professor at the University of Illinois, US, in the department of arms control and disarmament studies. The ministry of defence had utilized his services for the preparation of official accounts of the 1971 war and the counterinsurgency operations in the northeast. In the JIC/National Security Council secretariat, he was closely involved with the preparation of the reports of the Kargil Review Committee and the Group of Ministers on national security as also with the implementation of their recommendations. His publications include two books and several articles. LESS ... MORE The recent Joint Declaration of BRICS marks a pivotal moment in the group's evolution from a coalition of emerging economies to a significant geopolitical and geoeconomic force. With the expansion to include five new members and eleven partner countries, BRICS now represents nearly half the world's population and accounts for 40% of global economic output. This transformation not only signals its growing clout but also underscores its intent to reshape the global order in favour of the Global South. Entitled 'Strengthening Global South Cooperation for More Inclusive and Sustainable Governance,' the declaration emphasised BRICS's commitment to multilateralism, international law, and equitable global governance. It reflects a growing confidence and a clear pushback against Western dominance in global institutions. Once perceived as a non-Western alliance, BRICS is now positioning itself as the voice of emerging markets and developing countries (EMDCs), firmly rooted in the priorities of the Global South. PM Modi has aptly called for redefining the acronym BRICS so as not to indicate the initials of the five core members but to convey a shared functional purpose of 'Building Resilience and Innovation for Cooperation and Sustainability.' This captures the group's evolving identity. A significant aspect of the Joint Declaration was its open criticism of indiscriminate use of tariffs and proliferation of trade-restrictive actions- moves largely attributed to Western economic policies. It also condemned the attack on Iran and called for a two-state solution to the Israel-Palestinian conflict, but did not follow the Iranian line on Israel. This assertiveness reflects BRICS's increasing willingness to challenge the status quo, advocating for a fairer and more inclusive trade system. Its call for reform of global financial institutions like the World Bank and the IMF, long seen as instruments of the West, further illustrates this shift. The group's stress on multilateralism and international law was aimed at ensuring increased participation of the Global South in global decision-making processes and structures. It perceives 'the Global South as a driver of positive change.' It called for strengthening efforts to promote dialogue and consultations in pursuit of more just and equitable global governance, and of mutually beneficial relations among nations. On climate change, the group stressed that developed countries must step up with more grant-based, concessional finance, separate from existing aid, to help developing nations meet their climate goals without sacrificing poverty reduction and development priorities. The declaration covered the need for reforming the international financial architecture and stressed to enhance cooperation on all pillars of the United Nations Framework Convention on Climate Change (UNFCCC). This stance rightly insists that climate responsibilities must not come at the expense of development and poverty alleviation. It is a reminder that climate justice and equity are inseparable. On terrorism, the Joint Declaration expressed 'strong condemnation of any acts of terrorism as criminal and unjustifiable, regardless of their motivation, whenever, wherever and by whomsoever committed.' It condemned in the strongest terms the terrorist attack in Jammu and Kashmir on 22 April 2025, during which 26 people were killed and many more injured, while reaffirming its commitment to combating terrorism in all its forms and manifestations, including the cross-border movement of terrorists, terrorism financing and safe havens- a notable move for a diverse group with differing views on counterterrorism. Prime Minister Modi's strong remarks, indirectly aimed at Pakistan and China, highlighted the need for action against cross-border terrorism and the obstruction of sanctions against listed terrorists. While BRICS avoided the logjam on countering terrorism, unlike what happened at the Shanghai Cooperation Organisation (SCO), China's reluctance to support this issue would remain problematic. Diplomatically, the summit showcased BRICS's ability to bridge internal divides and issue a coherent and unified statement, no small feat for a grouping with such varying national interests. Its handling of the Israel-Palestine issue, calling for a two-state solution while not aligning completely with Iran, exemplifies the group's growing maturity in international diplomacy. In sum, the 17th Summit of BRICS indicates its transformation into a strong platform for the Global South. Its expansion has strengthened its legitimacy, and its assertive tone on global economic and political issues reflects a newfound confidence. If it can manage its differences, particularly on terrorism, it is poised to emerge as a credible counterweight to the West-led global governance system. The road ahead will be complex and difficult, but the message from Brazil is unmistakable: BRICS is no longer just watching from the sidelines. It is going to play an important role in managing global affairs. Facebook Twitter Linkedin Email Disclaimer Views expressed above are the author's own.
Hindustan Times
09-07-2025
- Business
- Hindustan Times
Navigating a tricky new era for Brics
The 17th summit of the Brics group of emerging markets and developing countries (EMDCs) in Rio de Janeiro, Brazil, offered insights into an institution undergoing profound changes amid an extremely disorderly and unsettling international situation. In form and shape, Brics is a transformed entity today. With the admission of Indonesia this year as a full member, Brics has morphed from a minilateral club of five nations — Brazil, Russia, India, China and South Africa — into a medium-sized multilateral entity with broader representation. The admission of Egypt, Ethiopia, Indonesia, Iran and the United Arab Emirates inside the tent, and the presence of 10 more partner countries including Nigeria and Vietnam, which are apparently waiting in the wings to also come in, mean that the Brics family has multiplied and is embarking on a second innings since it was first founded in 2009. Counting full members and partner countries together, Brics has 20 nations under its ambit, as if it were a parallel G20 comprising only EMDCs. It is in recognition of this expanded reality that Prime Minister Narendra Modi has called for redefining the very acronym Brics so as not to indicate the initials of the names of the five core members but to convey a shared functional purpose of 'Building Resilience and Innovation for Cooperation and Sustainability'. The present-day Brics has more collective heft and legitimacy than before as a powerful block of EMDCs which is doubling down on the twin goals of advancing multilateralism and multipolarity. With the strength of numbers lending greater self-confidence and bringing more issue areas under its ambit, the Brics we saw in Rio appeared bolder in critiquing and opposing unilateral actions and coercive measures ranging from trade tariffs and economic sanctions by the US, to military attacks and violations of international law by Israel against Iran and the Palestinians. Although Brics did not make massive headway on the longstanding push by China and Russia for creating an alternative global currency for de-dollarisation of the international financial system, the united front it put up at Rio against US President Donald Trump's trade wars and its emphatic call for multilateral solutions through consultation and inclusion of EMDCs and Least Developed Countries (LDCs), did get Trump's goat. His threat to impose additional trade tariffs on countries 'aligning themselves with the anti-American policies of BRICS' was timed as a pre-emptive strike to rattle leaders at the Rio summit. As many Brics members are bilaterally negotiating with the US to ease Trump's wave of tariffs, a dual game is underway. On the one hand, Brics as a whole is denouncing American trade protectionism and seeking to boost intra-Brics trade and investment flows. On the other, the bloc members are responding to Trump's warnings by professing that they are not seeking confrontation with the US and that Brics 'will never be directed against any third countries.' In light of Trump's attempted forcible shift in the modalities of the international system to bilateralism, Brics is rallying around the principle of multilateralism. But in practice, individual Brics countries are pragmatic and are seeking to pacify the US on a one-on-one basis to preserve their respective economic interests. It will be a tricky balancing act and will place limits on Brics becoming overtly anti-American or anti-western. India, in particular, has been wary of turning Brics into an ideological crusade against western imperialism. However, this does not mean India is status quoist and happy with the western-dominated global institutional architecture. At Rio, Modi presented the Global South as a 'victim of double standards' on developmental and security matters and likened international institutions lacking adequate representation of poor nations to 'a mobile with a SIM card but no network.' He even cited the expansion of Brics as an inspiration for implementing long overdue reforms in the United Nations and the Bretton Woods bodies. Lobbying to mainstream the concerns and interests of the Global South is only going to increase as Brics expands and draws in more countries into its circle. The Global South is being put at the forefront of Brics not merely for rhetorical reasons but because it is the common denominator on which each and every Brics member will unhesitatingly concur. Still, in spite of the clear signs of unity and consensus as reflected in the Rio Declaration of Brics, internal strains and divisions persist as the institution steps into a new era. The competition and rivalry between India and China is the central geopolitical fault line of Brics and will stay that way. Modi shot two unmistakable arrows at China in Rio. His call that no country should use critical minerals 'solely for its own interests or as a weapon' was aimed at China's hardball tactics of imposing export restraints on rare-earth metals which have caused panic among businesses worldwide. He also slammed the strategy of 'giving silent consent to terrorism for personal or political gain', a dig at China's unrelenting support and shelter to Pakistan. While the Rio Declaration avoided logjam on countering terrorism, unlike what happened at the Shanghai Cooperation Organisation (SCO) in Qingdao, China, the reinforced perception of Beijing as a stumbling block to New Delhi's rise means that this factor will inevitably impact intra-Brics politics and internal balancing within the expanded grouping. It is fair to conclude that Brics has grown more relevant in world affairs as a result of its expansion. But its new avatar will be acutely tested, pulled and hauled in different directions during a period of global uncertainty and widening conflicts. Whether a brave new Brics has arrived to fundamentally and rapidly reorder the world remains to be seen. Sreeram Chaulia is dean, Jindal School of International Affairs. The views expressed are personal.
