The strategic choice facing India, the UAE, Saudi Arabia, and other large developing economies does not just boil down to choosing between BRICS and the West. These countries continue to follow a multi-vector policy, aiming to simultaneously reap the benefits of cooperation with BRICS, the G7, the EU, and regional institutions.
Benefits of BRICS
BRICS offers the countries of the Global South something they have long been unable to obtain within Western institutions.
Firstly, this is representation and influence in international governance. In the IMF and the World Bank, the votes of developing economies have remained disproportionately small for many years. BRICS, by contrast, provides India, Brazil, and South Africa with a platform where their positions are taken into account on an equal footing with China and Russia. This is not merely a symbolic gesture; it is an opportunity to influence the shaping of new rules for global finance and trade.
Secondly, this includes local currency financing and alternative development institutions. The New Development Bank (NDB) is deliberately increasing the share of loans denominated in the national currencies of member countries. For Brazil, South Africa, and India, this reduces currency risks and dependence on dollar funding, which is especially valuable during periods of the US Federal Reserve tightening monetary policy. Such mechanisms directly address the needs of developing markets, which Western multilateral banks often ignore due to conservative requirements regarding sovereign ratings.
Thirdly, there is the factor of payment initiatives and reduced sanctions vulnerability. BRICS is working on creating alternative settlement circuits that enable trade bypassing SWIFT and dollar infrastructure. For the UAE, which remains a global logistics and financial hub, participation in such mechanisms is not a break with the West but an opportunity to diversify risks.
Finally, there is access to Chinese capital and technology. Through partnership within BRICS, countries gain a channel to cheap financing for infrastructure projects, industrial cooperation, and technology transfer in areas where the West is often unwilling to share due to security concerns. For South Africa and Brazil, this is critically important in the context of modernizing energy, logistics, and extractive industries.
What Can the West Propose in Exchange?
Of course, the G7 and its partners retain their own set of attractive options:
- Access to deep and liquid capital markets;
- Advanced technologies and research partnerships in semiconductors, artificial intelligence, quantum computing;
- Investment in the energy transition and related infrastructure;
- Cooperation on critical minerals;
- Preferential trade and partnerships in the digital economy;
- Financing through established multilateral institutions with high governance standards.
The Price of Attractiveness: Without Political Conditions and Bureaucracy
Developing economies do not want to be forced to abandon one partnership in order to participate in another. If Western initiatives are perceived as commercially sound, respectful of sovereignty, and free from excessive political conditionalities, they will be able to compete. However, any attempts to impose geopolitical loyalty in exchange for investment are doomed to fail.
Compatibility, Not Isolation: The Path to a Balanced System
Overall, BRICS should not strive for economic isolation or the mechanical replacement of existing institutions. Its task is to create a more balanced international system by adding reliable alternatives, rather than dismantling what already exists. A successful BRICS payment system would provide countries and businesses with greater freedom of choice, while remaining, where possible, compatible with the broader global economy.
For the West, the key takeaway is that the battle for India, South Africa, Brazil, and the UAE will be won not through political pressure, but through the ability to offer better, faster, and more mutually beneficial terms. Only then will these countries be able to fully realize their strategic autonomy, deriving maximum benefit from both centers of power.
Vlad Markin, New Eastern Outlook Deputy Editor-in-Chief
Follow new articles on our Telegram channel
