Akhil Ramesh

Opinion | As China and Russia champion an expanded BRICS, India may have to pick a side

Expanding the BRICS grouping would help build an alternative to the Western alliance and enable countries in the Global South to avoid economic shocks from sanctions

However, China dominating this new world order would not suit India, which is already under pressure from the West over its oil purchases from Russia

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Indian Prime Minister Narendra Modi arrives at the Group of Seven leaders summit in Elmau, Germany, on June 27. Photo: Bloomberg

Akhil Ramesh

Published: 3:30am, 7 Jul 2022

In June, China hosted the BRICS summit, which brought together the leaders of Brazil, Russia, India, China and South Africa, just a few days before the G7 meeting. This iteration of the BRICS summit was noteworthy in multiple ways.

First, it was held against the backdrop of the Ukraine conflict. Second, Russia recently defaulted on its sovereign debt commitments. Third, India is beginning to feel the pinch of striking a balance in an increasingly bipolar world order.

China had invited several countries to attend the BRICS foreign ministers’ meeting in May, and both China and Russia have voiced support for expanding the group. Developing countries have responded positively. In June, Argentina’s president expressed an interest in joining the grouping, while Iran has applied to join.

It may not just be Taiwan watching developments in Ukraine closely. Several countries in the Global South are taking note of the economic blowback from the conflict as Russia experiences first-hand the impact of sanctions.

For China, the conflict underlines the need to shield itself from such a scenario and to explore options beyond its dual circulation strategy. Creating an alternative to the Western bloc, comprising countries that have had disputes with the West, is one such strategy. Argentina’s Falkland Islands dispute with the UK and Iran’s tension with the US are two examples.

Beijing has been vying for the mantel of leadership of the Global South. China’s “century of humiliation” and its critique of Western nations’ human rights abuses, and Russia’s support of American whistle-blowers, make the two countries strong candidates to challenge the hegemony of the US-led Western alliance.