Russia's longtime ally talks about what's driving BRICS expansion

The expansion of BRICS will be a historic moment and the bloc will achieve the status of a global power that wants to become an alternative to the Western bloc, Serbian President Aleksandar Vucic told reporters during a visit to Athens on August 22, the day the 15th BRICS Summit opened in Johannesburg, South Africa.

“I think it would be a historic step for them if they decided to expand BRICS. I am not sure if they can make that decision today, but if they do, it would definitely be a historic decision and an important decision,” Vucic said, according to a broadcast by Serbian state news agency Tanjug.

“After decades, they are becoming a global force that is trying to create an alternative to the Western bloc. So the geopolitical game is becoming more and more interesting,” the leader of Serbia – a long-time ally of Russia – concluded.

World - Russia's longtime ally talks about what's driving BRICS expansion — Russian President Vladimir Putin speaks via video link, during the BRICS 2023 Summit in Johannesburg, South Africa, August 23, 2023. Photo: CNN

Mr. Vucic once shared that in the future, Serbia may face a choice between joining the European Union (EU) and the BRICS group as the prospect of a “European roadmap” for the Balkan country remains unclear.

Meanwhile, the BRICS Summit is still underway in Johannesburg. Leaders from Brazil, Russia, India, China and South Africa met on August 23 for a plenary session, where they discussed key issues including the Russia-Ukraine conflict, de-dollarization and the bloc’s expansion.

Russia-Ukraine conflict

South African President Cyril Ramaphosa, Indian Prime Minister Narendra Modi, Brazilian leader Luiz Inacio Lula da Silva, Chinese President Xi Jinping along with Russian President Vladimir Putin (attending virtually) reiterated the common consensus to bring about a peaceful and just end to the war in Ukraine.

“More and more BRICS countries are reaching out directly to Moscow and Kiev to join efforts that could effectively contribute to an immediate ceasefire and a just and lasting peace,” Lula da Silva said.

China and South Africa, which have stressed the role of the United Nations Security Council (UNSC) in ending the war peacefully, also share the same view.

“Dialogue, diplomatic negotiations and adherence to the principles of the United Nations Charter are necessary to resolve conflicts peacefully and fairly,” said Ramaphosa, reiterating that global peace and stability are “a priority” for South Africa.

World - Russia's longtime ally talks about what's driving BRICS expansion (Figure 2). — Chinese President Xi Jinping attends a plenary session during the BRICS 2023 Summit at the Sandton Convention Centre in Johannesburg, South Africa, August 23, 2023. Photo: Dawn

China has maintained a similar stance, but Xi Jinping has criticized the West for exacerbating the conflict by exerting undue influence over the UNSC.

“BRICS countries should stick to the path of peaceful resolution and strengthen coordination on major regional and international issues,” Xi said.

“International rules should be jointly written and adhered to by all countries based on the principles of the UN Charter, rather than being imposed by those with the strongest muscles or the loudest voices gathering together and treating their own rules as international norms,” the Chinese leader added.

Russian President Putin supports the position of his BRICS counterparts on ending the war through peaceful dialogue.

However, he criticized the West for “launching a war” in the region to expand its “hegemony and ongoing colonialist and neo-colonialist policies.”

“Our actions in Ukraine are guided by only one thing, that is, to put an end to the war waged by the West against the people of Donbass,” Putin said. “We thank our BRICS colleagues for their active participation in efforts to put an end to this situation and ensure a just settlement of the conflict by peaceful means.”

Expanding BRICS

At the plenary session of the conference on August 23, BRICS leaders firmly promoted the bloc's intention to expand and strengthen economic development.

BRICS needs to “accelerate the process of expansion to mobilize our strength and wisdom to make global governance more fair and equitable,” Xi said.

Indian Prime Minister Modi also expressed a similar view, erasing earlier doubts that India was hesitant to expand the bloc. “India fully supports the expansion of BRICS membership and we welcome this process based on consensus,” Modi said.

World - Russia's longtime ally talks about what's driving BRICS expansion (Figure 3). — Indian Prime Minister Narendra Modi attends a plenary session during the BRICS Summit 2023 at the Sandton Convention Centre in Johannesburg, South Africa, August 23, 2023. Photo: The National News

An announcement regarding the bloc’s expansion is expected soon, Mr Ramaphosa said, adding that a decision would be made “in due course at the Summit”.

Earlier, South Africa's Ambassador to BRICS Anil Sooklal said about 30 countries are currently interested in joining the bloc. Some of them have submitted formal applications, including Algeria, Bangladesh, Egypt and Ethiopia.

India's Business Standard newspaper quoted sources as saying that five countries that could be admitted to BRICS at the Johannesburg Summit are Argentina, Egypt, Indonesia, the United Arab Emirates (UAE) and Saudi Arabia.

“Dedollarization”

BRICS leaders have stressed the need to increase trade within the bloc using local currencies as part of a move towards “de-dollarisation” – reducing the dominance of the US dollar in global trade and finance.

They promote the achievements of the New Development Bank (NDB) established by BRICS in financing various projects, seeing the bank as an integral part of the bloc's economic development plan.

“Creating a common regulated entity for trade and investment transactions of BRICS countries will help us increase payment options and reduce loopholes,” said Brazilian President Lula.

Russia, which is scheduled to host the BRICS summit next year, also supports the idea of trading in national currencies within the bloc.

“We are successfully implementing the BRICS 2025 economic partnership strategy, in particular, strengthening bilateral cooperation in such areas as supply chain diversification, de-dollarization and the transition to national currencies in our joint settlements,” Russian President Putin said.

The BRICS summit will continue to conclude on August 24. Leaders from the BRICS countries and other invited delegates are expected to make announcements on key issues related to the bloc's expansion and trade relations in the coming days .

Minh Duc (According to TASS, Al Arabiya)

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