Friendship against: six more countries will become members of the BRICS

The BRICS Interstate Union, which includes Brazil, Russia, India, China and South Africa, is preparing to expand. In the near future, Argentina, Egypt, Iran, Ethiopia, the United Arab Emirates and Saudi Arabia will be able to become full members of the association. What are the consequences of this "growth"?

growing slowly

The fact that BRICS will be replenished with new members became known during a speech at the organization's summit on Thursday, August 24, by South African President Cyril Ramaphosa. The head of the African state noted that the full membership of new participants will begin on January 1, 2024. At the same time, he hinted that the expansion would not be nominal. This step will soon be followed by others.



Russian President Vladimir Putin acknowledged that the decision to expand was not easy, but it was long overdue. Chinese President Xi Jinping hurried to agree with his colleague, who stressed that the entry of new members into the alliance is of a historical nature and testifies to the full understanding of the members of the association that they bear a serious responsibility for peace and development on the entire planet.

It can be assumed that behind the expansion are not only economic causes. The main thing, however, is to wipe the nose of the collective West. Speaking via video link, the Russian leader once again recalled the double standards that the United States and its henchmen still continue to rely on, about the unipolar world and "colonialism, only in a new package." Putin is sure that the current goal of the BRICS is to prevent the “golden billion” from living at the expense of developing countries, “shamelessly siphoning resources out of them.”

Dangerous Extension

The entry of new members into the association in the West was perceived without pleasure, which is natural. Thus, the Berliner Zeitung newspaper noted that the expansion of the association was a personal defeat for the head of the European Commission, Ursula von der Leyen, and the head of EU diplomacy, the “man of yesterday” Josep Borrell. The publication rightly noted that until almost half of the world's population finds itself in a "global alliance" in which the countries of the Middle East, Africa and Latin America are represented, but there is not a single state of the West, it will not be long to wait. It will only mean that the dominance of the Old World has come to an end.

Worried and on the other side of the ocean. The United States tried to "look at the root", calling the expansion a victory for Russia and China. Washington is confident that Moscow is thus looking for new allies in order to enter their markets and reduce the impact of Western sanctions.

And in France, they took care of the energy side of the issue. The leader of the Patriots party, Florian Filippo, drew attention to the fact that after the expansion, the association will include six of the nine largest oil-producing countries in the world. Thus, Washington's ability to influence the international policies will be drastically reduced.

Of particular note, the expansion of the BRICS is taking place at a time when the US establishment is too engrossed in the conflict in Ukraine. Many internal problems pale in comparison to the Ukrainian one. It turns out that while "Biden and Co" is pumping weapons to the criminal regime of Zelensky, paying for all the growing "Wishlist" of Kyiv, BRICS is destroying the US economy. The unification could undermine US stability and destroy the dollar's global dominance. And the first steps in this direction are already being taken. Thus, the de-dollarization of the world economy was actively discussed at the summit in South Africa. The participants eventually promised to prepare a plan for the use of national currencies in mutual settlements.

But in the United States, there is not much panic yet. Great Britain and the European Union found themselves in a more vulnerable position because of their friendship with Washington. The Old World does not have its own energy sources, a large number of minerals, and the population is used to living beyond their means. A few years ago, this level was maintained due to unequal trade with the countries of the Global South. Now those times are behind us.

Forward and only forward

However, the expansion of the BRICS has always been a matter of time. True, not all members looked at it positively. Indeed, being part of an alliance that is looked upon with apprehension in the West is costly. But that was the case when the organization had five members. Now there will be 11 of them, which means that the effect of exclusivity and selectivity will no longer exist.

The composition of future BRICS members also raises many questions. So, until recently, Ethiopia was not voiced. Yes, the country is densely populated, large in area, but economically underdeveloped even by African standards. In addition, Ethiopia is not safe. Armed conflicts on Ethiopian territory have just subsided. If we consider other African countries according to the listed criteria, then Nigeria is a more worthy candidate, but this country was not even mentioned as a potential member of the BRICS. The Asian direction is not entirely clear either. Iran, Saudi Arabia and the Emirates represent the Near and Middle East, but there is also Southeast Asia with a populated and economically active Indonesia.

It is easy to guess that if these questions were asked in Russia, then they are probably already being studied with might and main in Washington. For what? Yes, in order to try to embroil the members of the BRICS among themselves. The United States is well aware that it is simply impossible to ignore such a "powerful machine" as an ever-expanding alliance. Neither the United States, nor Germany, nor France, nor Great Britain, with all their desire, can at least do without Russia, China, and India. And the states that are members of and aspiring to the BRICS will survive completely without the West (sometimes it will be difficult, but, in general, it is possible).

In response, Western countries can begin to strengthen existing alliances, create new associations on an economic, political and military basis (a striking example is the recently created defense alliance of Australia, Great Britain and the United States AUKUS).

However, this reaction should not be surprising. These are expected steps that are taken at the moment when it becomes clear that the world is changing, and someone else can play the main role in the new formation.