Pretoria, July 11 (RHC)-- South Africa will slated to hold the next BRICS summit in August. The five emerging powers that make up the group: Brazil, Russia, India, China and South Africa, which holds its presidency, have decided that the summit will be held in person.
The BRICS need to coordinate forces and strategies in an increasingly polarized international scene, where traditional hegemonies are being restructured in a way that has not been seen since the Cold War. Within this projection of the bloc's unity, the less influential members in international politics, such as Brazil and South Africa, defend their membership of the group as an example of neutrality in the face of war in Europe.
Brazil and South Africa, while collaborating economically from the space offered by the BRICS as well as from the diplomatic and bilateral ties that flow from it, keep their channels of communication and collaboration with the West. They are both keen to be present in forums and meetings convened by Western powers and organizations.
This is the specific case of South Africa, when Cyril Ramaphosa visited Europe with the aim of meeting with the presidents of Russia and Ukraine, respectively. Last month, Ramaphosa led the presidents of the Republic of Congo, Egypt, Senegal, and Uganda in a historic attempt to broker peace between Kyiv and Moscow.
The delegation went to the city of Bucha, a suburb of the city of Kiev, and there they spoke of the need for peace and shared their experiences on the devastating effects of wars on the present of nations and their future generations. They also participated as guests in the international economic conference in Russia.
The summit is an opportunity for Pretoria to convene greater economic collaboration, considering the moment of inflation and rising poverty. Pretoria has done strong diplomatic work to avoid holding the summit in China. There were fears in the bloc that one of the least strong members of the economic bloc would see its socio-economic and political agenda with the Western powers affected by organizing a summit in a neutral position because of the war in Ukraine.
According to African media, Pretoria has the intention to include a space for dialogue for peace in the summit. Cyril insists that the summit will not only be a forum on economic issues but also an opportunity, under his leadership, to bring up the issue of peace between Russia and Ukraine as well as the negotiation of grain exports.
Perhaps the weakest country in the block is South Africa. Today, it is going through a tough economic situation, which has forced a return to the blackout regime and unleashed the reputation of poverty indicators. Presumably, the government seeks to have a greater voice before its partners in the framework of the summit.
