BRICS – Anyone banking on security?
Hardly a multilateral meeting goes by without its attendees committing themselves to the promotion of peace and security across the globe. The Sixth BRICS Summit, hosted from 14-16 July in Brazil, was no exception.
Ties with other emerging economies crucial
After five years of introspection and institution building, the sixth BRICS summit offers an opportunity for the group to focus on its relations with the rest of the world. Relations with the Group of 7 (G-7) are particularly contentious. Russia’s exclusion from the G-8 following the crisis in Crimea has moved the BRICS to the centre stage in Russian foreign policy thinking, and risks pulling the group onto an opposition footing with the West.
Both politics and economics behind proposed BRICS bank
The BRICS countries (Brazil, Russia, India, China and South Africa) were brought together by their investment returns and growth potential, but for the group to act they must find some common purpose.
BRICS and Africa: A lot to be done yet
The emergence of the BRICS (Brazil-Russia-India-China-South Africa) grouping coincided with the notion of an ‘Africa Rising’, a term coined following Africa’s growing economic prosperity.
South Africa in BRICS: A Bilateral Trade Analysis
This study examines the value, intensity, complementarity, balance, and structure of South Africa’s trade with its partners in the BRICS (Brazil, Russia, India, China, South Africa) alliance.
The way forward for the BRICS New Development Bank
2013 was a difficult year for the five BRICS countries. China and Brazil faced slowing growth, South Africa and India were hit by currency instability, and concern over Russia’s governance deepened (before recent events in the Ukraine pitched them into all-out crisis).
The Green Economy and the BRICS Countries: Bringing Them Together
The ‘green economy’ has been around as a concept since the 1970s but gained relevance again in the wake of the global economic recession in 2009 as government leaders looked towards new economic opportunities through sustainable, equitable and resilient economic growth.
BRICS’ Public Diplomacy and the Nuances of Soft Power
How effective are the BRICS in inspiring confidence in their public diplomacy? This question lies at the heart of their soft power.
Can member states develop a meaningful trade agenda?
‘Don’t talk to me about giblets,’ International Relations and Co-operation Minister Maite Nkoane-Mashabane reportedly said during last week’s BRICS (Brazil, Russia, India, China and South Africa) business summit. This remark reveals several things about the nature of the BRICS forum, and co-operation on trade matters in particular.
Unpacking South Africa’s BRICS in Africa equation
In a move that has generated much excitement, South Africa has invited representatives from various African continental institutions, including regional economic blocs to the Brazil, Russia, India, China and South Africa (BRICS) Summit (26-27 March 2013).