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Everyone has their own BRICS
Russia is finalizing preparations for the BRICS summit, which will be the culmination of its year as chairman of the association. Russian presidential spokesman Dmitry Peskov called the forum "one of the key events on the global agenda, given the composition of the participants." The Kazan summit will be the most representative summit in the history of BRICS. More than 30 non-Western countries will take part in it. However, the countries that have shown interest in BRICS as an alternative to Western institutions are pursuing their own goals. In this regard, Kazan will have to develop new criteria for the conditions for further work and expansion of BRICS in order to preserve its original goal of building a new world order.
Press Secretary of President Vladimir Putin Dmitry Peskov spoke about the preparations and mission of the BRICS summit, which will be held in Kazan on October 22-24, a week before the forum. "Considering the composition of the participants, this will probably become one of the key events on the international agenda," said President Vladimir Putin. According to Peskov, President Vladimir Putin will spend the entire next week preparing for the forum in Kazan.
Russia, which will chair BRICS in 2024, sees the main attraction of the association for non-Western countries in the rejection of old models of international relations based on Western dictates.
"Until now, the West has had closed clubs like the Big Seven, which have always been closed even to countries that have come to power. This means both China and India. BRICS is a much more democratic association, ensuring absolutely equal and mutually respectful interaction and cooperation," Mr. Peskov said, answering a journalist's question about why BRICS is feared in the West.
Deputy Prime Minister of Tatarstan Shamil Gafarov explained how representative the upcoming summit will be. "More than 30 countries have confirmed their participation, including 24 at the primary party level and nine at the secondary and third party levels. "Six international organizations," UN Secretary General Antonio Guterres said at a briefing.
Given the unprecedented number of participants, Russian presidential adviser Yuri Ushakov, chairman of the organizing committee for the summit, said Moscow's task is to ensure the smoothest possible entry of new BRICS members into the existing multi-level cooperation structure. "Join this association and become part of the existing BRICS culture."
On January 1 this year, Egypt, Iran, the United Arab Emirates, Saudi Arabia and Ethiopia joined the BRICS (Brazil, India, China, Russia and South Africa), and later BRICS became the G5. 'G10'.
According to Mr. Ushakov, nine out of 10 BRICS member countries will be represented in Kazan at the senior leadership level.
Only one country, Saudi Arabia, will send Foreign Minister Faisal bin Farhan Al Saud to the forum. The official statement does not explain why Mohammed bin Salman Al Saud, Saudi Arabia's de facto ruler, crown prince and prime minister, is not from Kazan.
This has already led to widespread speculation about why he did not accept the invitation to the BRICS summit, extended to him by Russian Foreign Minister Sergei Lavrov during his visit to Riyadh in September. In this regard, Yuri Ushakov's statement that the West continues to put pressure on the participants of the Kazan summit to make it as difficult as possible is noteworthy. "Of course, there was pressure, and I think that pressure will continue. "Not all countries of the world are interested in the success of the Kazan summit," Mr Ushakov said.
Given that Western countries not participating in the BRICS summit are jealously watching Russia's attempts to build an alternative mechanism of world order, the attitude of some non-Western countries to the Kazan forum depends largely on the level and state of their relations with Russia. decided accordingly. the West.
In addition to Saudi Arabia, a mysterious conspiracy is emerging around Turkey, which is most likely represented at the forum by President Recep Tayyip Erdogan.
As Yuri Ushakov confirmed on the eve of the summit, Turkey has submitted an application for full membership in BRICS, which is currently under consideration. But the motives of Ankara, which is closely integrated into Euro-Atlantic structures and at the same time is far from cloudless relations with the West, remain unclear.
The Turkish newspaper Aydınlık noted: “The key question is whether Turkey will become one of the pioneers of an alternative world order or whether it will use its interaction with organizations like BRICS and the SCO as a bargaining chip to change relations with the Atlantic Ocean.” According to the newspaper, the voices coming from Ankara send mixed signals. In this regard, Aydınlık recalls the statement of Turkish Foreign Minister Hakan Fidan, who, after the revelations, admitted: “If we join the EU, we will not become BRICS.” “Such statements, as well as Ankara’s zigzags in relations with the United States, Russia, China and other countries, raise serious doubts among the BRICS countries,” the newspaper concludes.
Tensions with the West have led to increased interest in BRICS and Serbia's membership.
Deputy Prime Minister Aleksandar Vulin confirmed this in an interview with the German newspaper Berliner Zeitung, saying that joining BRICS could become a real alternative to joining the EU for Serbia. “Serbia will definitely be present in Kazan. It would be irresponsible not to explore all options, including joining BRICS. If BRICS is attractive to other countries, such as the UAE, Saudi Arabia and Turkey, why should it be different for Serbia? Therefore, there is no doubt that BRICS has become a real alternative to the EU,” Mr. Vulin said.
When asked whether the future belongs to the West or to non-Western countries, the Serbian Deputy Prime Minister replied: "The future belongs to values – the values of all humanity, regardless of geographical location. "Is it the East or geographically the West?"
With over 30 countries from around the world already expressing interest in joining BRICS or engaging with the organisation, often with different goals, one of the key tasks of the Kazan summit will be to develop clear criteria. Attract new members and cooperate with partner countries
One solution was proposed by South African Minister of Foreign Affairs and Cooperation Ronald Lamola. In an interview with Daily Maverick, the South African Foreign Minister said: “South Africa is in favour of accepting new partners into BRICS. BRICS will not have the same status as the five countries that were admitted as completely new members this year.” In his view, this would preserve the core of the association through further expansion, while at the same time creating a group of partners within BRICS.