A new expert report titled "The Future of BRICS" identifies US hostility as the foremost external threat to the alliance's success. The study was prepared by the "Knowledge Diplomacy" Center at the Russian State University for the Humanities (RSUH) and the "New Era" Center for Human Technology Development.
According to the report, the "collective West" is actively engaged in containment and pressure tactics. Experts argue that the US and its allies see the success of BRICS as a threat to their hegemony, leading to sanctions, attempts to create internal divisions, and information campaigns aimed at discrediting the group as an "anti-Western" bloc.
A significant portion of the report focuses on the structural dominance of Western financial institutions. Analysts point out that the global reign of the US dollar and established systems like the IMF and World Bank create practical hurdles for BRICS initiatives. These include scaling alternative mechanisms such as the New Development Bank (NDB) and implementing settlements in national currencies, despite a growing trend toward de-dollarization among member states.
Iranian political analyst Ruhollah Modabber noted that the West’s perception of BRICS as a threat stems from an unwillingness to "allow the growth of independent institutions outside their sphere of unilateral dominance." He linked recent US threats, including potential tariffs on BRICS nations, to this broader context of containment.
Overcoming External Pressures
Vladimir Dzhabarov, First Deputy Chairman of the Federation Council's International Affairs Committee, suggested that the key to resolving these tensions lies in shifting American perception. He argued that BRICS should be seen not as an "anti-US" project but as a new structure for international unity.
"The main problem is the American attempt to 'strangle' BRICS," Dzhabarov noted. He cited India as an example of a self-assured economy that has successfully resisted threats of punishment for trading with Russia, proving that such pressures often fail against confident nations.
Rasigan Maharajh, Director General of the Institute for Economic Research on Innovation at Tshwane University of Technology (South Africa), added that while BRICS must protect its members from Western attacks, it is vital to remain "non-Western" in orientation rather than purely "anti-Western."
Internal Challenges
The report also identifies several internal challenges that could slow the group's progress, including economic and cultural heterogeneity among members and existing geopolitical frictions between key participants. Institutional weakness and a lack of formalized decision-making mechanisms further complicate the alliance’s path. Furthermore, some experts point out that not all members are ready to fully decouple from Western economic and financial systems.
According to Rasigan Maharajh, a key internal priority for BRICS is the maintenance of harmony among its members and the recognition of their diverse perspectives. This internal cohesion is seen as essential for the group to function effectively despite its inherent heterogeneity.
Farhad Ibrahimov, an expert from the Center for Middle Eastern Studies, argued that the root of these internal challenges lies in an underdeveloped understanding of how to construct a "non-Western" economic model. He noted that not all BRICS nations are fully convinced they can abandon the "Western economic needle," which creates a significant hurdle for implementing a truly polycentric system in international economic relations.
Ibrahimov further observed that many people globally, including some within Russia, retain a belief that Western countries will eventually become more "reasonable," perhaps leading to a return to systems like SWIFT. He dismissed these hopes as unrealistic, comparing them to the likelihood of finding life on Mars. In his view, once a commitment to building independent infrastructure is made, the alliance must see it through to the end rather than looking back at traditional Western-led systems.
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Photo: brics-russia2020.ru/Creative Commons 4.0
Based on materials from TASS