IRIA News

South African President Cyril Ramaphosa hosted China’s Xi Jinping, India’s Modi, Brazil’s Lula da Silva, and some 50 other leaders in Johannesburg for the BRICS Summit 2023. Leaders of the emerging economies gathered to discuss the bloc’s future and possible expansion.

In the wake of heightened tensions following the Russian invasion of Ukraine and China’s increasing rivalry with the United States, the BRICS Summit of 2023 holds significant importance. Russian President Vladimir Putin, who is one of the founding members of the BRICS bloc, is attending the event virtually.

Russian President has refrained to travel to South Africa to attend the event in person due to the possibility of his arrest. South Africa, the host of the BRICS Summit 2023, is a member of the International Criminal Court (ICC), which issued an arrest warrant for Vladimir Putin in March this year for his alleged involvement in the abduction of children from Ukraine.

🇧🇷🇷🇺🇮🇳🇨🇳🇿🇦 Foreign Minister Sergey #Lavrov takes part in the BRICS Ministerial meeting.

📍 Johannesburg, August 22, 2023#BRICS pic.twitter.com/9NUHx4ESTi

— MFA Russia 🇷🇺 (@mfa_russia) August 22, 2023

Although the South African administration explicitly stated that it would not arrest the Russian President if he visits the country, Moscow sent Foreign Minister Sergei Lavrov sent on Putin’s behalf to attend the event while Putin addressed the event virtually.

Expansion of BRICS

The BRICS group was founded by Brazil, Russia, India, and China in 2009. South Africa was added to the group in 2010. Home to 40% of the world’s population and responsible for more than 30% of global economic output, the BRICS bloc is mainly focused on increasing economic cooperation between the emerging economies of the world.

The top agenda of the three-day-long summit remains focused on finding ways to stabilize the shaking economies of developing nations.

South African officials said that around 40 countries have expressed a desire to join the bloc including Iran, Saudi Arabia, Argentina, and Bangladesh. Out of these 40 countries, more than two dozen have formally applied to be a part of the bloc. The leaders of BRICS are expected to discuss the possibility of the bloc’s expansion.

Several analysts and observers have compared BRICS to other economic-oriented blocs, such as G20, and G7, however, a separate opinion about the group says that it has deviated from the original cause of economic cooperation and become a politically motivated group aimed at changing the existing world order.

BRICS no rival to G7 and G20

“We do not want to be a counterpoint to the G7, G20, or the United States,” Brazil’s Lula said during the summit in Johannesburg. “We just want to organize ourselves.”

This is the first time that Lula is attending the BRICS Summit since becoming Brazil’s President. “The BRICS have a unique chance to shape the trajectory of global development. You, entrepreneurs, are part of this effort. Our countries together represent a third of the world economy,” he said during a business meeting.

Contrary to his counterparts, China’s President Xi Jinping did not address the BRICS multilateral business forum, giving rise to several speculations. However, during his meeting with the South African President, Xi Jinping said “Right now, changes in the world, in our times, and in history are unfolding in ways like never before, bringing human society to a critical juncture.” He added that “The course of history will be shaped by the choices we make.”

Vladimir Putin addressed the summit via video conference. “The objective, irreversible process of de-dollarization of our economic ties is gaining momentum,” the Russian President said in a pre-recorded statement.

Putin maintained that even with Russian exports of grain and fertilizer being “deliberately obstructed,” his country has “the capacity to replace Ukraine in grain, both commercially and in free aid to needy countries,” according to an official translation of his speech at the summit.