BRICS: Counterweight to the ‘West’

Source: Neues Deutschland (Nd) | Original Published At: 2026-09-12 14:36:17 UTC

Key Points

• India, as host of the 2026 BRICS summit, frames the bloc as 'non-Western' rather than 'anti-Western'; Brazil and South Africa are described as sharing this view, while China and Russia are more open to anti-Western positions.
• Iran is referred to as a BRICS-plus state, and the article says China and Russia have become more receptive to anti-Western framing since the Ukraine war and the US attack on Iran.
• BRICS was formed after the 2008 financial crisis to better withstand global crises linked to the West, and has expanded since 2024 to ten members with many interested states.
• Members are united by a desire to strengthen the Global South in the world order, despite differences such as the India-China rivalry; the commentary says they do not want a China- or Russia-led order replacing US leadership.
• The New Development Bank, founded by BRICS in 2014, is highlighted for providing low-cost development and poverty-reduction loans without IMF-style austerity conditions.
• The article supports BRICS efforts to increase trade in local currencies and establish alternative payment systems, while noting that the bloc is still far from creating a new world economic order.