Brazil, Russia, India, China, and South Africa - better known as the BRICS. Top representatives from these five emerging economies are meeting in Johannesburg this week for the bloc's latest summit.
The group was put together several years ago as the world's most promising emerging markets�. and South Africa. But ever since its formation, the bloc's role and purpose has been unclear, not least in Brazil, where its importance has shifted along with economic fluctuations and changes in government.
Now, under current President Luiz Inácio Lula da Silva, it seems to be close to the top of the agenda once more.
With Vladimir Putin staying home for fear of arrest and the shadow of the Ukraine war hanging over the summit, this year's BRICS meeting has earned some major attention worldwide. Not least because the bloc may be about to get bigger.
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In this episode:
Cedê Silva is The Brazilian Report's correspondent in Brasilia.
Background reading:
- In our July 17 Brazil Weekly newsletter, we explored the initiatives to expand the BRICS, suggesting that it may not be in Brazil's best interests to do so�
- At the opening of the BRICS Summit, Cedê Silva explained what is at stake for this week's meeting.
- In September last year, China had already backed Argentina's bid to join BRICS during a meeting on the sidelines of the 77th UN General Assembly.
- Back in 2019, amid the BRICS Summit held in Brasília, we looked back on the group's ten-year anniversary, pointing out that it had morphed into 'China & Co.'
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