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Brics

Brics
Brics (an acronym for Brazil, Russia, India, China and South Africa) refers to an association of 10 leading emerging markets. The other member states are Egypt, Ethiopia, Indonesia, Iran and the United Arab Emirates.
Indonesia’s President Prabowo Subianto closed the year on firm footing despite challenges in his first full year in office. Photo: Reuters
Indonesia

Power, protests and policy shake-ups shape Indonesia’s 2025

President Prabowo Subianto asserts his authority as he navigates the global stage and domestic challenges in his first full year in office.

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War and conflict

Opinion | Welcome to a world where wars don’t end and sanctions don’t work

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Asean

Opinion | In its year under Malaysia, Asean tried to set systemic reform in motion

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South Africa

Trump administration warns South Africa not to issue G20 statement

US opposes South Africa’s G20 agenda, while Trump escalated tensions with false accusations of genocide against White Afrikaners and land grabs.

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A G20 summit sign is seen at Johannesburg Expo Centre on Monday. Photo: EPA
China-Latin America relations

Brazil’s Lula opens Cop30 demanding courage – and cash – to save the planet

Chinese Vice-Premier Ding urges nations to honour Paris pledges with fairness and justice, calling for global climate action.

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China-Latin America relations

Brazil pushes China for stronger climate commitments in run-up to Cop30

Brasilia is hoping that Beijing can fill the leadership void left after the US abandoned the Paris Agreement.

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Diplomacy

Opinion | Diplomacy in the age of populism is fast, fickle and unbound by the rules of old

Swift, informal deals can quickly defuse crises, but without a new rules-based order, global stability is being held hostage to chance.

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US President Donald Trump meets Russian President Vladimir Putin for a summit in Alaska in August. Photo: AFP/Getty Images/TNS
Ukraine war

Opinion | Only a multipolar coalition can secure Ukraine peace

To move forward, negotiations must be conducted on the basis of security guarantees that reflect today’s geopolitical realities.

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Diplomacy

Opinion | China is supporting multilateralism one institution at a time

With a new organisation to promote mediation, among other global bodies, China is signalling its enthusiasm to get more involved in world governance.

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Open Questions series

Open Questions | John Mearsheimer on Taiwan, US-China rivalry, Trump and Ukraine

International relations scholar weighs risks of great power conflict in East Asia, West’s blunder on Russia and what Donald Trump got right about China.

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Illustration: KaKuen Lau
Indonesia

From pledges to policy: Indonesia’s Prabowo marks 1 year in office

His energetic diplomacy is boosting Indonesia’s profile abroad, but concerns over civil liberties and the economy remain.

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Indonesia’s President Prabowo Subianto gestures at the 80th United Nations General Assembly in New York on September 23. Photo: Reuters
US-China relations

Opinion | Given its rare earth vulnerability, US cannot risk all-out trade war

Washington must accept that it has missed its chance to contain China’s rise and focus on developing a US macro-region.

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Indonesia

Will Indonesia’s plan to join Brics bank lead to heavier debt burden?

With Indonesia having to pay to join the New Development Bank, it should tap foreign investors for project financing instead, analysts say.

India

Opinion | Why India is hedging its bets on another China charm offensive

As Washington pushes New Delhi closer to Beijing, both Asian powers must exercise strategic patience for an effective detente.

Illustration: Craig Stephens
New Zealand

Opinion | Why New Zealand joining Brics makes sense in Trump’s ‘America-first’ era

Brics is a maturing economic and diplomatic powerhouse. Joining could help New Zealand spread its diplomatic wings and secure its future.

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Brics leaders and other officials pose for a group photo during the latest summit in Rio de Janeiro, Brazil, on July 7. Photo: Xinhua
North Korea

Opinion | Can North Korea’s Kim Jong-un forge a legacy that goes beyond the bomb?

Kim has ensured North Korea is no longer isolated. The question remains whether he can also overcome the country’s economic woes.

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Global monetary policy

Opinion | Brics is slowly but surely chipping away at US dollar dominance

US dollar supremacy isn’t going away any time soon. But through scaling up of initiatives and good governance, Brics can usher in a multipolar monetary order.

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Taiwan

Taipei backtracks on South Africa chip controls in representative office row

Island suspends export curbs after Pretoria says it wants to talk a dispute over Taipei’s de facto embassy.

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Taipei’s controls on exports to South Africa were due to come into effect in November. Photo: Reuters
China-India relations

India and China vie for Global South leadership at UN gatherings

Parallel diplomacy highlights rivalry as Beijing pledges WTO reforms and New Delhi touts democratic alternatives.

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US-China relations

As the US retreats, can Xi’s new initiative shape the future world order?

Analysts say the GGI reflects China’s ambitions to shape a multipolar world, but it needs more substance to avoid becoming an ‘empty shell’.

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Diplomacy

Opinion | China’s moment to rewire the world is arriving. What will it do?

For the first time since the Cold War, the world is between orders and the momentum is with Beijing as geopolitical winds shift eastward.

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From the left, Russian President Vladimir Putin, Indian Prime Minister Narendra Modi and Chinese President Xi Jinping talk ahead of the Shanghai Cooperation Organization summit at the Meijiang Convention and Exhibition Center in Tianjin, China, on September 1. Photo: AP
Laos

Laos embraces China, Russia-led SCO amid frustration with Asean

Laos is the third Southeast Asian nation to partner with the SCO, in a move that analysts say could erode Asean’s collective credibility.

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Lao President Thongloun Sisoulith arrives for the Shanghai Cooperation Organisation summit in Tianjin on August 31. Photo: Xinhua
US-China relations

‘Just hiccups’: Trump’s India nominee pledges to pull New Delhi away from Beijing

US president’s envoy pick, however, says India must stop buying Russian oil and wants it to open up its market for US products.

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Diplomacy

Opinion | For EU and China, Beijing parade was a missed chance to build bridges

The EU could have shown up to confront Putin and engage on Ukraine. China could have chosen true leadership over coalitions of convenience.

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Diplomacy

Editorial | Brics is looking for resilience, not an open clash with the US

It would be a mistake to discount Brics summits, where the aim is long-term strength amid global instability and geopolitical tensions.

Chinese President Xi Jinping addresses a virtual Brics Summit on September 8. Photo: Xinhua
US-China trade war

Brics virtual rally falters as members appear leery of exacerbating US trade war

Group criticises US policies but steers clear of direct attacks on US President Donald Trump, who’s called for an end to the bloc.

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Russian President Vladimir Putin takes part in the virtual Brics summit convened by Brazil on Monday. Photo: EPA
Brazil

China’s Xi makes rallying call against hegemonism, protectionism in Brics speech

Brics nations must ‘jointly defend multilateralism’, uphold the Brics spirit of openness, Chinese leader says in virtual address.

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Diplomacy

Macroscope | Shanghai spirit for new world order needs to be matched by the West

SCO summit’s vision can’t be implemented without the requisite monetary and financial systems in place. The West must play a role if the world is not to fragment into blocs.

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