At the virtual BRICS summit, Brazil, Russia, India, China and South Africa demonstrated unity on the Ukraine issue. However, on another point, there is a difference.
Munich/Beijing – From a European point of view, sometimes the whole world seems to be united in condemning Russia’s war of aggression against Ukraine. That this did not happen became clear once again on Thursday (23 June). The heads of state of the so-called BRICS countries of Brazil, Russia, India, China and South Africa gathered – albeit only virtually – for their annual summit, this time hosted by Beijing. Together, these five countries represent more than 40 percent of the world’s population, with more than 3.2 billion people living here. The BRICS countries may disagree on many points, but they have one thing in common: they have so far avoided criticism of Russia’s invasion of Ukraine.
Chinese President Xi Jinping: “Ukraine crisis” is “a wake-up call to the world”
In the case of Moscow, which is the aggressor, this is not surprising. But China, economically and technologically dependent on good relations with the West, has so far stood firm on the side of the Kremlin. In his opening remarks on Wednesday, Beijing leader Xi Jinping said the Ukraine war (which he referred to simply as a “crisis”) was “a wake-up call to the world.” However, by this, Xi does not mean that the world should be wary of countries like Russia seeking to expand their sphere of influence. Instead, Xi criticized NATO and the West, blaming them for the escalation of the situation.
“The fetishism of positions of power, expansion of military alliances and pursuit of one’s own security at the expense of other countries’ security inevitably lead to security dilemmas,” Xi said. A few days earlier, on his birthday, the 69-year-old again pledged his support for the Kremlin in a conversation with Russian President Vladimir Putin. China’s Foreign Ministry has also repeatedly affirmed the “solid” friendship between the two countries. However, after Xi’s BRICS speech, Andrey Denisov, Russia’s ambassador in Beijing, stated: “We support everything he said.”
China over Russia sanctions over Ukraine war
In the so-called “Beijing Declaration” of the BRICS summit, the name Ukraine appears only three times, although the final document is several pages long. They supported talks between Russia and Ukraine, he said, and: “We also discussed our concerns about the humanitarian situation in Ukraine and in the region.” The tenor that emanated from this summit, although there were some sentences that were vaguely formulated clearly: Russia still has many friends in the world.
Apart from China, this also includes India. New Delhi also remains on Moscow’s side, but describes itself as neutral. The subcontinent depends on trade with Russia, especially in the arms sector. The Indian government gets most of its military supplies from Russia. And India likes to buy Russian oil too – just like China, the country has recently increased its imports and is benefiting from a steep drop in prices.
Ukraine war: Xi Jinping calls Western sanctions a “double-edged sword”
Thus, both countries rejected sanctions against Russia. At least in the case of China, observers assume that the government is not trying to help other countries evade sanctions. In his opening remarks at the BRICS summit, Xi Jinping described Western sanctions as a “double-edged sword” and a “boomerang”. Brazil and South Africa also tend to see it that way, at least they don’t support punitive measures either. Brazil’s main concern is not to jeopardize economic ties with Moscow.
South Africa, whose capital Pretoria lies about 8,500 kilometers south of Kyiv, was one of 17 African countries that abstained from voting on a UN resolution condemning Russia’s war of aggression in March. During the Cold War, the Soviet Union supported the struggle of freedom groups against the apartheid regime. “Our approach is that we believe in peace, we believe in resolving any conflict through peaceful means, and we believe in the superiority of the UN system, which governs us all by agreed rules that we all must respect South Africa’s ambassador to Beijing, Siyabonga. . Cwele, recently told the Chinese state newspaper Global Time.
China wants to expand BRICS
The leaders of the BRICS countries have met annually since 2009, initially without South Africa, who only joined the group in 2010. Even if there is a certain degree of unity among the countries on the Ukraine issue, the differences cannot be ignored. India is not only part of the BRICS, but also a member of the Quad, a loose military alliance that also includes Australia, Japan and the United States. The four countries have set goals to limit China’s influence in the Indo-Pacific region. To Beijing, unsurprisingly, the Quad was “an exclusive and closed clique” and “a product of the Cold War mentality.”
And Brazil is not only interested in good relations with Russia, but also with the West. President Jair Bolsonaro, who wants to be re-elected in six months, could even benefit from war if his country presents itself to the West as an alternative to Russia in terms of oil, gas or food supplies. Tough balancing act.
India will also be a guest country at the G7 summit in Elmau next weekend, as will South Africa. Both Indian Prime Minister Narendra Modi and South African President Cyril Ramaphosa are on a trip to Bavaria, where the G7 countries must convince if they want both countries to side with the Ukraine conflict. With more at stake than whether South Africa and India support Western sanctions or not. It is also about the question of whether a new bloc will form with the BRICS countries as a counterweight to the West. It has not yet. However, Beijing is already seeking to expand the five-nation alliance: Chinese Foreign Minister Wang Yi said in May that it wanted to start the expansion process. (SH)
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