“BRICS countries account for more than 30% of world GDP”

teleSUR English

On the geopolitical importance of the BRICS Summit to be held in Russia until October 24, we spoke exclusively with Ivonne Tellez, an expert in international law, about this event. teleSUR

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00:00And to go deeper on the analysis of this year's BRICS Summit, we are joined by international

00:04law expert Dr. Yvonne Tellez.

00:06Hello, Yvonne.

00:08Welcome to From the South.

00:09Hello.

00:10Good morning, Luis.

00:11Happy to be here.

00:12The agenda is moving forward as the BRICS 2024 Summit kickstarts.

00:18President Vladimir Putin has held bilateral talks with attending heads of states and government.

00:23What can you tell us of this year's agenda and the impact it can have as member states

00:27and partners aim to reduce inequalities in the world?

00:31Definitely, yes.

00:34We have to take into account the importance of BRICS, because the five countries that

00:41currently make up the block group represent more than 42% of the global population.

00:47That's 34% of the world's territory, 23% of the gross domestic product.

00:57And that's the 80% of the global trade.

01:01That means that the blocks, the block, the BRICS countries represent around 36.8% of

01:09the global GDP, surpassing the G7.

01:13So that's something that we have to take into account, because that could definitely impact

01:19the world order.

01:21The world order, because we are reshaping it.

01:24It's like a pivotal moment in the world order, because now with the BRICS representing

01:32and including geopolitically significant countries, the group could become a bastion for the multipolar

01:40system.

01:41And moreover, in this world right now, with the United States and its allies continue

01:48to exert pressure on the international community, BRICS offers an alternative aim at promoting

01:55sovereign equality and the diversity of civilization, allowing for new countries, global south countries,

02:03to enter into this new platform of decision.

02:08Cooperation, as you were saying Yvonne, within the BRICS format reaches many fields.

02:13Recently, the Venezuelan news media VTV signed a memorandum of understanding for cooperation

02:18with BRICS TV.

02:19With this, would they plan to face media campaigns led by Western powers against the people of

02:25the closed south and beyond?

02:26How important is BRICS' role to act as a counterweight, we could say, against Western hegemonic powers

02:32in different fields?

02:34Well, there's a lot to say, because we have to take into account as well that what we're

02:43seeing right now is emergence of this new power, new powerful states, emerging economies

02:54from the global south.

02:55And for example, talking about Venezuela or Bolivia, how strategic they are right now

03:01for the current world order.

03:03I'm talking about, for example, the oil reserves that Venezuela has and the lithium reserves

03:09that Bolivia has.

03:10So within this context, what we're seeing is that this platform, this new platform,

03:18represents like a countermeasure for this usual hegemonic status of the world order.

03:28And that means also that the new decisions that could be taken within the BRICS community

03:33and within this summit could, in a way, transform what we're seeing right now.

03:40Because that means, for example, moving away from the SWIFT platform, that means moving

03:47away from the usual markets, taking into account as well that we have China over here, and

03:53China is a primary consumer of oil power from global south.

03:58So that means that what we're doing right now is to try to counterbalance this inequitable

04:05system, this inequitable world order regarding the economic area, in the main sense.

04:14So that means that with this new platform of decision, I'm representing more than the

04:2030 percent of the gross population, it could have a great impact.

04:25And it also can act as a countermeasure for these economic sanctions that countries such

04:32as Venezuela, Cuba, Russia, and some others, Iran as well, are facing right now.

04:39And just we have to look that these powers, these countries right now, are getting together

04:47and within this platform of integration, that means that they grow stronger, even,

04:52for example, in international forums such as the United Nations.

04:58Unfortunately, as this BRICS summit takes place, the Israeli genocide against the people

05:03of Palestine continues, as well as the increased aggressions against Lebanon and Syria.

05:08This is also going to be on the table of this summit.

05:11How can BRICS help bring an end to Tel Aviv's policies and secure peace and stability in

05:16the region?

05:17Yes, that's true.

05:18What we're seeing right now is that this summit is like a key space to consolidate greater

05:29economic independence for the developing countries.

05:33That means that what we can see is probable support for Lebanon, for Palestine, from the

05:45new emergent countries, the new emergent economies, and from the countries that are seeking also

05:51not just the usual BRICS, but all these new countries that have come inside this group.

05:59This is just like a global forum, not an international organization in itself.

06:05That means that what we can see is at least an attempt to bring some kind of pacification

06:21or aims at helping build these new agreements, and of course pose again a counterviolence

06:31against, for example, Israel within the Middle East.

06:35Also, we have to take into account that that means that, for example, Iran and China are

06:41great partners of Russia, and that means that this agreement will allow and will provide

06:49also Russia, for example, with new airs of economic freshness regarding the economic

06:56sanctions that it's facing from the West.

06:58So we can see this summit is a great opportunity to see at least the first steps for a shift

07:08and a counterviolence, because it will represent some options to reshape the world order, and

07:15we have to see how many countries will be present at the summit.

07:20There's an expectancy of at least 60 countries that will come inside the summit, so that

07:26means a lot, and that means a great number of countries outside the Western and the usual

07:34international forums, so that is a representative number.

07:41Yvonne, one final question.

07:42In your opinion, what do you expect to come out from this BRICS summit in the current

07:46context that we're living in?

07:49Okay.

07:50I think that one of the first objectives that we're seeking here and that we can look at

07:59is the great opportunity for the Global South to enter, to join the bloc, and to try to

08:08build a new era of multilateralism.

08:11Why do I say this?

08:13Because it's like a moment for a global redefinition of the Global South and how the Global South

08:21is entering and playing in the international forum.

08:24Also, we're talking about not just the bloc expansion, the BRICS expansion, we're talking

08:29about the technology transfer, the alternative to the dollar, and new financing formulas.

08:36So, definitely, this shows that we can see a potential to offer more economic alternatives

08:44for the Global South, for Latin American countries, and for other developing regions.

08:48Also, what they are seeking at, and they're aiming at, to try to put a more equitable

09:00platform of exchange.

09:02So, that means, again, a counterweight to the usual, for example, IMF solutions that

09:13have only brought poverty, inequity within the regions.

09:24So, I think that this opportunity offers a chance for a deeper level of integration

09:33with a probability for establishing free trade agreements, strengthen mechanisms, for example,

09:40such as the BRICS Bank, and this alternative payment system that takes a step back from

09:48the SWIFT platform.

09:51So, I think we're talking about three different areas, and those are crucial for this new

10:00world order that we're seeking at.

10:03Thank you, Yvonne, very much for your time and your inputs here in From the South.

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