The Core Mission: A Multipolar World
The primary goal uniting the BRICS members—Brazil, Russia, India, China, and South Africa, plus new members like Iran, Egypt, Ethiopia, and the UAE—is the desire to create a 'multipolar' world. This is a direct challenge to the post-Cold War global system
dominated by the United States and other Western powers. Members believe that key international institutions, such as the World Bank and the International Monetary Fund (IMF), are overly influenced by Western interests and no longer serve the needs of developing countries. To counteract this, BRICS has focused on building its own institutions. The most prominent example is the New Development Bank (NDB), headquartered in Shanghai. The NDB was created to finance infrastructure and sustainable development projects in member states and other emerging economies, offering an alternative to traditional Western-led lending.
Shared Ambition: De-Dollarisation
A significant shared economic goal is 'de-dollarisation'—reducing the world's dependence on the U.S. dollar for international trade and finance. This ambition is driven by a desire to insulate their economies from U.S. monetary policy and the impact of American sanctions. Russia, in particular, sees this as a way to bypass Western sanctions, while other members view it as a path to greater economic sovereignty. The bloc is actively promoting the use of local currencies in trade between member countries and has developed payment systems like BRICS Pay to facilitate this. While the creation of a single common BRICS currency remains a distant and complex idea, the push to strengthen national currencies in global trade is a powerful unifying force.
The Great Conflict: The India-China Rivalry
The most significant internal conflict plaguing BRICS is the deep-seated rivalry between its two largest members, India and China. The two nations are locked in a decades-long border dispute that has occasionally flared into violent clashes, creating profound strategic mistrust. This tension complicates the bloc's ability to present a truly united front. Their visions for BRICS and the world order also differ. China tends to view the bloc as a vehicle for directly challenging U.S. hegemony and extending its own global influence. India, conversely, seeks 'strategic autonomy', using BRICS as one of several platforms to advance its own interests while balancing relationships with both Eastern and Western powers. This fundamental difference means that while they share a platform, their long-term goals often seem to be in competition.
Political Systems and National Interests
Another layer of conflict comes from the diverse political systems and national interests of the member states. The group contains democracies like India, Brazil, and South Africa, alongside authoritarian states like China and Russia. This ideological divide can make consensus difficult on issues related to governance and human rights. Furthermore, each member often prioritizes its own national interests over collective goals. For instance, Russia's involvement in the Ukraine conflict has put other members in an awkward diplomatic position, while China's overwhelming economic size leads to concerns about its dominance within the group. The recent expansion adds even more complexity, bringing in historic regional rivals like Iran and Saudi Arabia (who was invited to join), and countries with their own pressing domestic challenges.
Expansion: A Double-Edged Sword
The 2024 expansion to include Egypt, Ethiopia, Iran, and the United Arab Emirates has significantly increased the bloc's demographic and economic weight, amplifying its voice for the Global South. With the new members, the group now represents nearly half the world's population and a significant share of global oil and gas production. This serves the shared goal of building a more influential coalition. However, a larger, more diverse group is also harder to manage. Decision-making, which relies on consensus, could become more cumbersome. The expansion brings new potential conflicts into the fold and risks diluting the group's focus, turning it into a collection of countries with varied and sometimes competing agendas rather than a cohesive bloc with a clear mission.
