BRICS Expands, Saudi Arabia & Iran In, No ASEAN Member Yet. India Says Boost To Multipolar World Order

This is the first time BRICS, which last added South Africa to the bloc in 2010, witnessed such a substantial expansion that is expected to inject a new agenda into the grouping

BRICS SUMMIT 2023: Injecting a fresh lease of life into the bloc, leaders of BRICS (Brazil, Russia, India, China and South Africa) went for a substantial expansion Thursday by adding six new members – Saudi Arabia, Iran, Argentina, United Arab Emirates (UAE), Egypt and Ethiopia – while vowing to include more in the coming years. The announcement was made on the second day of the 15th BRICS Summit, which was held in Johannesburg under the South African chairmanship.

The leaders – Brazilian President Lula da Silva, Russian President Vladimir Putin, Indian Prime Minister Narendra Modi, Chinese President Xi Jinping and South African President Cyril Ramaphosa – adopted the Johannesburg II Declaration, putting up a united front.

“We appreciate the considerable interest shown by countries of the global South in membership of BRICS. True to the BRICS Spirit and commitment to inclusive multilateralism, BRICS countries reached consensus on the guiding principles, standards, criteria and procedures of the BRICS expansion process,” stated the Declaration.

The six new members will be accorded full membership by January 1, 2024, while the issue of adding the next set of countries into the bloc will be taken up during the next BRICS Summit to be held under Russia’s Chairship in Kazan in 2024. The first BRICS Summit was also held in Russia, in Yekaterinburg, in June 2009.

The BRICS has still not added any country from the ASEAN (Association of Southeast Asian Nations) bloc. Indonesia was expected to be inducted as a new member during this summit but that did not happen.

“We reiterate the importance of further enhancing BRICS solidarity and cooperation based on our mutual interests and key priorities, to further strengthen our strategic partnership,” the statement said.

The joint statement also said that the foreign ministers of Brazil, Russia, India, China and South Africa will jointly develop the BRICS Country Model and a list of prospective partner countries, which will be finalised in the next summit.

BRICS Expansion, Modernisation ‘A Message for All Global Institutions’

Prime Minister Narendra Modi said India has always been supportive of the proposal to expand the BRICS as that will “strengthen BRICS as an organization and provide new impetus”.

“This step will further strengthen the faith of many countries of the world in the multipolar world order. I am pleased that our teams have come to an agreement on the guiding principles, standards, criteria, and procedures for expansion,” Modi said, adding that based on this the new members were added during this year’s summit.

He also said India has deep and historical ties with each of the six new members of the BRICS.

“The expansion and modernization of BRICS sends a message that all global institutions should adapt to changing times. This is an initiative that can set an example for the reform of other global institutions established in the twentieth century,” he added.

Use Of Local Currencies By BRICS & NDB

While the expansion of BRICS went as per the agenda, the other critical decision on the use of local currencies in international trade and financing transactions remained inconclusive.

“We stress the importance of encouraging the use of local currencies in international trade and financial transactions between BRICS as well as their trading partners. We also encourage strengthening of correspondent banking networks between the BRICS countries and enabling settlements in the local currencies,” said the statement.

It added: “We task our Finance Ministers and/or Central Bank Governors, as appropriate, to consider the issue of local currencies, payment instruments and platforms and report back to us by the next Summit.”

The New Development Bank, or BRICS Bank, will also have new members – UAE, Bangladesh and Egypt.

According to Foreign Secretary Vinay Kwatra, the basic objective for using local currencies by the BRICS is to do trade settlement in national currencies. He said each of the BRICS member countries will have to put in place massive regulatory frameworks to be able to do trade settlement in their local currencies.

Rajiv Bhatia, Distinguished Fellow, Gateway House, said adding new members to BRICS will help in developing “convergences” within these countries. “In the next summit, members will have to reinvent themselves as they do away with the old philosophy. They will have to maintain a certain kind of harmony.”

Bhatia added that the expansion process was “mainly driven by China, with full support from Russia and South Africa, while India and Brazil chose to follow the decision”.

On the NDB, the veteran diplomat believes that the BRICS have now got a robust “African pillar” with the addition of Ethiopia and Egypt, while the addition of Iran and Saudi Arabia is a reflection of the rapprochement that China had been working on.

The Shanghai-based NDB will now be headed by the former President of Brazil, Dilma Rousseff. “We expect the NDB to provide and maintain the most effective financing solutions for sustainable development, a steady process in membership expansion, and improvements in corporate governance and operational effectiveness towards the fulfilment of NDB's General Strategy for 2022-2026,” said the joint statement.

Subscribe And Follow ABP Live On Telegram: https://t.me/officialabplive