The Presidents of the BRICS nations – Brazil, Russia, India, China and South Africa – are set and ready to open a summit in Johannesburg today, Tuesday, August 22 where they will discuss on expanding their membership as several members are pushing for the bloc to be a counterweight to the West.
Heightened global tensions caused by the Ukraine war and an increased rivalry between China and the US have added seriousness to the move to strengthen the bloc, which has suffered from internal divisions and a lack of logical vision.
South African president, Cyril Ramaphosa, had said in a statement made ahead of the meetings that an expanded BRICS would serve as a representation to a diverse group of nations with differing political systems.
One of the topics on the summit’s agenda is to boost the use of member states’ local money (currency).
The South African summit organisers, had affirmed that there will be no talks of a BRICS currency, (an idea suggested by Brazil earlier in the year as an alternative to the dollar).
President Ramaphosa will host Chinese President, Xi Jinping, Brazil’s leader, Luiz Inacio Lula da Silva and the Indian Prime Minister Narendra Modi from August 22 till 24.
Russian President Vladimir Putin, will join the summit meeting virtually as he is wanted under an international arrest warrant for purported war crimes in Ukraine.
While a potential BRICS expansion remains debatable and unsure at this time, the bloc’s promise to become a champion of the developing “Global South” and offer a substitute to a world order chaired by wealthy Western nations is already finding support.
More than 40 nations have expressed their interest in joining the bloc, according to South African officials. Out of the lot, almost two dozen have officially asked to be admitted.
