Brief: BRICS and South Africa
The BRICS trade agreement has put the United States in a tough place between maintaining positive relationships to avoid anti-west rhetoric while also advancing national interest by condemning competitors; South Africa is the prime example of this struggle. South Africa has become the representative of the Global South and a lure for more countries that may feel that the West has snubbed them in economic trade development. With the rapid growth of the Global South, the United States must address these concerns now due to the growth BRICS could see in the future, threatening U.S. and allied interests by disrupting the global trade system.
Issue/Question
What are the goals of the BRICS agreement, and what is South Africa’s role in its development? What does a BRICS world look like, given its announced expansion? Is this a threat to the West and G7?
Background
Brazil, Russia, India, China, and South Africa have come together into an informal alliance of “club diplomacy” provided the named BRICS to reshape the world order from what they have decided the West has dominated. Generally, the goal of BRICS is to create a platform in which members can expand trade and heighten economic growth outside of Western influence, with a primary goal of eliminating the necessity of the dollar as the world trade currency standard. It has been argued that this agreement is a direct challenger to the G7 bloc, given that BRICS makes up 40% of the world population and is soon to be over a quarter of the world’s GDP.1
South Africa, in this case, can be seen as the voice of the African continent and a representative of the Global South among major powers. This makes BRICS a threat to G7 because it appeals to the Global South, avoiding the high standards and pressure the West places on them when participating in trade. BRICS is an alternative to the Western approach to international trade, and the Global South sees it as a chance to gain influence and have their voices heard.2 It is still yet to be seen how this completely plays out in the development of these countries, as even South Africa has yet to reap some of the benefits. Still, the significance of South Africa and BRICS is that they are drawing immense attention to working to balance the world economic architecture.3 This creates a desire for more countries to join, and it continually has more applications to become a member, seeing the addition of 5 more countries this year.
It is imperative that the United States take a tactful approach to addressing the rising concern of BRICS influence and how South Africa has become a symbol of opportunity for the Global South. Africa and South Asia hold the fastest-growing economies and populations in the world. Therefore, failure to meet the needs of these regions and allowing strong influence from competitors would be detrimental to the future growth of the United States. The United States must take steps to maintain these relationships and rethink what a mutually beneficial relationship can and should look like. Breaking ties with countries such as India and South Africa, due to their alignment with Russia and China, could mean a stronger argument for other nations to join BRICS and create a stronger anti-west rhetoric among them.4 The international environment is evolving, and how influence is exercised is not the same as it was 60 years ago, and the United States must adapt accordingly.
The views expressed are solely those of the writer and not those of PCFR, which takes no institutional position on policy.
A brief for our March 7, 2024 program on BRICS featuring Gustavo de Carvalho, Senior Researcher at the South African Institute of International Affairs (SAIIA)
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