MCViewPoint

In the end, many of the group’s goals, such as dedollarization or regulating the price and quantity of oil and minerals, seem unlikely or impossible. Meanwhile, the goal of escaping US hegemony, if achieved, could just lead to Chinese hegemony. However, the biggest contradiction of the BRICS agenda is revealed in Xi Jinping’s closing speech when he advises the BRICS nations to avoid hegemony, bloc-building, and sleepwalking into a ”new Cold War”—given that his vision for BRICS is to build and dominate a large bloc to counter the US and the G7.

https://mises.org/wire/assessing-brics-expansion-debunking-expectations

Antonio Graceffo

At the conclusion of the BRICS summit in Johannesburg on August 24, 2023, it was announced that the five-country grouping of Brazil, Russia, India, China, and South Africa, had invited six more countries to join: Saudi Arabia, the United Arab Emirates, Iran, Egypt, Ethiopia, and Argentina. The new memberships, which will take effect in January 2024, were called “historic” by Chinese leader Xi Jinping, while Vladimir Putin, unable to travel due to an International Criminal Court warrant, remotely congratulated the new BRICS members and pledged to expand the group’s global influence.

Given the economic and political conditions in most of the member countries, however, as well as conflicts between them and diverging interests, the goals of the expanded BRICS group are largely unachievable. In the end, if successful, BRICS will replace US hegemony with Chinese hegemony.

Goldman Sachs economist Jim O’Neill came up with the acronym BRIC in 2001 to designate the four rapidly growing economies (South Africa was not yet included), which he predicted could be among the world’s largest by 2039. In recent years, Xi Jinping has promoted BRICS as a rival to the Group of Seven (G7), but it remains loosely organized and has no institutions or currency of its own. China, Russia, and, to some extent, India hold most of the political and economic influence in BRICS.

Those who believe that BRICS will disrupt the international order can cite several impressive statistics. With the accession of the new members, BRICS countries will contribute an additional 400 million people for a combined 46 percent of the world’s population. They will also account for 37 percent of global gross domestic product (GDP) (more than the G7), 42 percent of world oil production, and significant percentages of various critical minerals. What is more, the group is expected to grow: forty countries have expressed interest in joining.

Members believe BRICS will acquire soft development loans backed by China, champion their own interests, dedollarize their economies, counter US hegemony, and increase revenues from minerals and oil. Each of these points is discussed below.

Lack of Shared Interests

See the rest here

Be seeing you