BRICS and Questions of Maritime Commerce

https://www.maritime-executive.com/article/what-the-brics-expansion-means-to-shipping

This short article merely touches on what is in fact a huge topic – one that is only starting to be understood and thought out. As BRICS expands and plays a larger role in creating an alternate economy the ramifications for this in the realm of global trade and shipping will be significant – which is why a publication like The Maritime Executive wants to bring it up.

When one considers everything from security arrangements to insurance, potential tariffs and questions of currency exchange, there is scarcely a facet of modern economics that is exempt. The global order is in the process of changing and the Atlanticist model is not only being challenged – it may already be in serious decline. This is not to say the G7 does not wield tremendous power, for it certainly does but the possibilities here are nearly limitless and the very emergence of an alternative order will significantly weaken not just the power and projection of the G7 but its tools and mechanism will be limited. The American-dominated G7-order wielded power because for decades these players held all the cards. Those days are over it would seem.

As the article states, this does not mean these groups will fall into an automatic polarity – like new Cold War blocs. No, it's going to be far more complicated than that, at least for the short term. Many nations are trying to triangulate and BRICS will help them do that. The power centres of BRICS are going to keep accumulating wealth and soft power. The G7 bloc will be doing the same but for nations like the United States this will represent a loss. Britain will be something of a toss-up and the story to watch will be the EU. These developments along with the potential for US decline will likely drive Brussels toward a more independent path. In the long term this will weaken the G7 further and mark the ultimate end of Atlanticism. These final points are somewhat speculative and still distant. But the trajectory will be established and the story told over the next decade or so. And there are many variables – the status of Russia is one of them as is the question of war between Washington and Beijing.