Welcome to Age of BRICS+

https://www.bbc.com/news/world-66525474

The world is changing, a new order is forming. This has been in the air for sometime but a milestone was passed on 1 January 2024 with the expansion of BRICS.

The BBC piece suggests this order is a rival to the G20 but then walks back the claim as some BRICS members are part of the G20. The proper contrast is with the G7 – the expression of David Rockefeller's North American, European, and Asian Trilateralism, an elite financial and political club meant (currently) to exclude rising powers like China and Russia.

The real potential of BRICS has been on display over the past two years with the sanctions regime imposed on Russia. It has largely failed as BRICS is in the process of erecting a parallel and rival global economy that can circumvent the power of the G7 nations.

And now with nations like Ethiopia, Iran, Egypt, Saudi Arabia, and the UAE joining, the potential challenge has amplified.

Iran is of course highly antagonistic to the G7 and Ethiopia under Abiy Ahmed has certainly moved away from Western domination. His recent moves to establish a port in Somaliland will also irritate the West. The UAE's relationships are complicated but it has certainly been backing Ethiopia's agenda in the Horn region.

What is certainly generating great unease and even shockwaves in Washington is the new membership of nations like Egypt and Saudi Arabia which have long been US allies and effectively under US domination.

This sends a signal. They are triangulating. They're not turning away from the US (as they see it) but pursuing an independent course and refusing to allow Washington to control their policies. Washington will see it as rebellious and disloyal.

With Egypt, the immediate concern is always the Camp David Accords and the relationship with Israel. This was under threat when Morsi came to power after the Arab Spring but under al-Sisi, the situation seems stable. He has simply stepped into the shoes vacated by Hosni Mubarak and has perpetuated his policies. But Egypt faces other struggles in the realm of economics and demographics and all of North Africa is in a state of turmoil. Egypt's position with regard to the Suez Canal is also very important and this move into BRICS will generate no small degree of angst.

But far more consequential is the move made by Saudi Arabia. Riyadh has already sent out signals that it is willing to reconsider the entire petro-dollar scheme and trade in other currencies. Joining BRICS is but a step on the way and you can be sure that some in Washington will be looking for ways to reverse this most unsatisfactory situation.

And in Argentina with the election of Milei – the G7 has dodged a bullet as this friend of Western banking has pulled the plug on joining the BRICS.

The full implications of the BRICS expansion are yet to be seen but whether this trend continues or is arrested will be directly affected by US policy under Biden during the final year of his first administration – and of course the elections of 2024.

See also:

https://pilgrimunderground.blogspot.com/2023/09/brics-and-questions-of-maritime-commerce.html

https://pilgrimunderground.blogspot.com/2023/02/south-africa-brics-and-ukraine.html

https://pilgrimunderground.blogspot.com/2023/07/a-non-aligned-movement-for-new-world.html