16 years after its inaugural leaders’ summit, the BRICS+ will hold its 17th summit in Rio de Janeiro from 6-7 July. It will be the first time the bloc meets as a 11-nation group, after incorporating Egypt, Ethiopia, Iran, Saudi Arabia and the United Arab Emirates in 2024, and Indonesia in 2025. For the BRICS it is a pivotal moment. With Brazil currently holding the presidency, it must navigate an increasingly complex global landscape. Amid a significant shift in global power and a new US foreign policy stance that forces other international players to redefine their roles, the BRICS could be instrumental in advancing the interests of the Global South. Therefore, the bloc is trying to develop new instruments and financial systems to lessen its dependence on established Western frameworks.
Despite this ambition, the BRICS’ global influence is often constrained by its own internal limitations. The group’s inherent heterogeneity, coupled with deeply divergent member interests (notably on the question of how it positions itself towards the West), a lack of mutual trust and a shifting governance structure, present significant obstacles to achieving its initial transformative vision.
This dynamic tension between its global aspirations and internal challenges is what defines the BRICS today.
