Contrary to what the mainstream media previously propagated, the Kazan summit showed Putin leading a successful gathering of the Global majority. Surprisingly, most of the same media acknowledged this.
Putin hosted more than 30 world leaders, and the presence of the United Nations Secretary-General António Guterres represented the utmost proof that Putin’s isolation was a false narrative. Previous gatherings, such as the Russia-Africa Summit (with 50 heads of state and governments), the Saint-Peterburg Economic Forum, and the Eastern Economic Forum in Vladivostok, all had previously shown that the pretended isolation was a just narrative supported by these same media outlets.
Western Media Reactions
Bloomberg ran the headline: “Putin Hosts BRICS Leaders, Showing He Is Far From Isolated.” They should have realised this earlier, as the majority of countries did not accept the imposition of sanctions on Russia.
Politico’s Brussels Playbook noted that United Arab Emirates President Sheikh Mohamed bin Zayed Al Nahyan chose not to attend the EU-Gulf Cooperation Council summit in Brussels recently. Instead, he went to the BRICS summit to cultivate closer strategic ties and coordinate on international issues with Moscow.
The Guardian printed the following headline: “Putin returns to world stage hosting 36 leaders at BRICS summit in Russia” and the Foreign Affairs article “The Battle for the BRICS: Why the Future of the Bloc Will Shape Global Order” stated that “Not only is [Russia] far from being an international pariah but also is now a pivotal member of a dynamic group that will shape the future of the international order. That message is not mere rhetorical posturing, nor is it simply a testament to the Kremlin’s skilful diplomacy with non-western countries or to those countries’ self-interested, pragmatic engagement with Russia.”
The German Zeit Online highlighted the different high-profile meetings and the expected outcomes, and in a previous edition came with the headline “Vladimir Putin is suddenly mainstream again”. However, the German public news outlet DW News presented a report and interviewees with a downgrading, propagandistic or even desperate tone. The same downgrading language was played on France24 English too, especially keeping an arrogant tone.
Putin hosted more than 36 state delegations
During the Summit, Putin had a full agenda with bilateral meetings with heads of state, such as Xi Jinping of China, Narendra Modi of India, who offered his mediation in the Ukraine conflict, Cyril Ramaphosa of South Africa who thanked Russia for being on his country’s side since the apartheid regime, Abdel Fattah al-Sisi of Egypt, Iranian President Massud Peseschkian, Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdoğan, Venezuelan President Nicolas Maduro, and many others.
Among the delegations was the UN Secretary-General António Guterres. Putin and Guterres discussed the work of the United Nations, the Middle East crisis and the situation in Ukraine in view of a peace settlement. The Secretary-General called for an immediate cease-fire in Gaza and Lebanon and the end of the war in Ukraine.
The EU Reaction and the Commonwealth Summit
Questioned about the BRICS Summit, European Council President Charles Michel seems to be one sensible, realist voice in Brussels to compensate for the arrogant style of Ursula von der Leyen, the EU Commission’s president. Michel told the Financial Times the EU should stop lecturing the developing world and show more respect to them if it wants to limit Chinese and Russian influence. “At the European level there is a reflex which is close to a form of lecture” and added, “We are not always very good in terms of communication, in terms of explanation, in terms of talking with them and showing a certain respect to them”, concluded the President of the European Council.
Simultaneously, the Commonwealth summit took place in Samoa, a symbol of the agonising British Empire. This year, their summit witnessed historically low attendance by heads of state and government because many members of the Commonwealth chose to attend the BRICS summit instead. Others, like Canada and Sri Lanka, simply turned their backs on this stagnant organisation. Sri Lanka is applying for BRICS membership. As if the sparse attendance weren’t enough, the attendees used the summit to push for reparations from Britain for the slave legacy and the atrocities committed during colonisation.
Returning to BRICS, in short, the summit in Kazan was successful in attracting the global majority, representing diverse voices and a willingness to build a more just, inclusive, and prosperous world. The success of BRICS lies in embodying the hopes of the global majority for an alternative world order, fostering unity in diversity, where political and economic regime changes and lecturing smaller nations are not on BRICS’ agenda.
Ricardo Martins ‒PhD in Sociology, specializing in policies, European and world politics and geopolitics, especially for the online magazine “New Eastern Outlook”
