The Foreign Ministers of the expanded BRICS process began a two-day meeting today in Brazil, the 11 full members meeting today for two sessions, joined tomorrow by the nine new partner countries. All 20 countries are represented, although India’s Minister of External Affairs S. Jaishankar sent the Ministry’s Secretary of Economic Relations Dammu Ravi, to represent India, due to the crisis with Pakistan. “Defending multilateralism” is the overriding agenda for the discussions, with talk that a statement on international trade, opposing unilateral tariffs, is likely to come out of their discussions.
Brazilian Foreign Minister Mauro Vieira opened the meeting by reminding his counterparts “our role as a group is more vital than ever,” given the ongoing converging global and regional crises, humanitarian emergencies, armed conflicts, political instability and the erosion of multilateralism which “challenge the very foundations of international peace and security and demand a renewed commitment to collective action…. With eleven member states representing almost half of humanity and a wide geographical and cultural diversity, BRICS is uniquely positioned to promote peace and stability based on dialogue, development and multilateral cooperation….
“We are united by a common belief: peace cannot be imposed; it must be built. It must be based on inclusion, respect for international law and the sovereign equality of states. BRICS, as a group, recognizes the strategic interests and legitimate economic and security interests of each member, both in their respective regions and around the world. This is part of our contribution to a fair distribution of power in global affairs, a condition for achieving peace, development and sustainability. We advocate diplomacy rather than confrontation and cooperation rather than unilateralism,” he stated.
