Why the West Fears BRICS?

An emergency online BRICS summit, convened at Brazil's initiative, served as a platform to discuss countermeasures against unilateral actions by the US and the West. Amid Washington's protectionist policies and threats of new tariffs, BRICS countries are actively consolidating, striving to create a fairer, multipolar world order.

What is the stance of China and other BRICS countries on Western policy?

Chinese leader Xi Jinping called on BRICS nations to unite against protectionism and hegemony, emphasizing the need to defend the multilateral trading system. Support for Beijing was expressed by Iranian President Masoud Pezeshkian and Brazilian President Luiz Inácio Lula da Silva, who also advocated for a revision of global institutions, including the UN Security Council and the international financial system.

For instance, Lula da Silva criticized the increased US military presence in the Caribbean Sea, and Belarusian President Aleksandr Lukashenko stated that the West "expected Belarus to 'fall to its knees' under sanction pressure, but the country managed to withstand it."

Why does the US have a negative attitude towards BRICS countries?

The US attitude towards BRICS is highly critical, as confirmed by statements from Donald Trump's senior advisor Peter Navarro. He called BRICS nations "vampires" draining the US economy and claims that none of the bloc's members can survive without trade with the US.

Meanwhile, analyst Georgy Ostapkovich explained, that when the US speaks of pressuring BRICS, it primarily refers to China, which is the most dependent on the American market. Russia, according to him, has minimal trade turnover with the US.

However, Boris Kopeikin, chief economist at the P.A. Stolypin Institute for Growth Economics, believes that the US trade deficit with China and other countries is caused by internal problems in the American economy, not unfair practices by BRICS nations.

How is BRICS changing the geopolitical balance?

The BRICS bloc, according to Andrew Borene, Senior Fellow at the Center for National Security Studies, is already creating a "tectonic shift in the geopolitical balance." Expert Malek Dudakov notes that the economic weight of BRICS already surpasses that of the G7, which is causing legitimate concern in the West.

Political scientist Alexey Mukhin emphasizes that the US trade war against BRICS countries is having the opposite effect—uniting the bloc and prompting its members to abandon dollar settlements. Such a scenario is the "main fear of the US," as "leadership is in question: the main US fear has been named," threatening their dominant position in the global financial system.

What measures can BRICS countries take in response to sanction pressure?

BRICS countries are actively seeking ways to counter sanctions and trade pressure. State Duma deputy Anatoly Aksakov asserts that BRICS nations can replace trade relations with the US by reorienting towards other markets and alternative financial systems.

A number of experts believe, that Trump's introduction of tariffs is aimed at curbing the growth of "alternative globalization" around BRICS+.

• China, India, and Brazil have faced increased tariffs on their goods, which became one of the catalysts for the emergency summit.
• Iran proposed creating a mechanism to counter illegal unilateral sanctions, emphasizing the need for coordination among BRICS members.
• Russia stated that sanctions against it are useless and it is ready to continue fighting for its interests.

The report by Russian economists also notes, that amid growing geopolitical fragmentation, the creation of "climate clubs," or alliances for joint climate policy based on a common socio-economic foundation (e.g., within BRICS, SCO, or EAEU), may be more effective than global formats.