“Divide, сonfront, and rule”: what will be discussed at BRICS Summit in Brazil

09:00, 07.07.2025

No challenge will be thrown at the West

In three days, the 17th BRICS summit begins in Rio de Janeiro. The Russian delegation will be led by Foreign Minister Sergey Lavrov. It is worth recalling that since 2024, the group has expanded beyond the founding members to include Egypt, the UAE, Ethiopia, Iran, and, as of January 2025, Indonesia.

“Given that Russian President Vladimir Putin and Chinese leader Xi Jinping will not attend the summit, no major challenge will be posed to the West,” said Georgy Toloraya, executive director of the National Committee for BRICS Research, during the roundtable “BRICS-2025: Russia as Architect of a New World Order.”

It should be recalled that Putin will not attend due to Brazil’s unclear stance on the International Criminal Court’s decision. In March 2023, the ICC Pre-Trial Chamber issued an arrest warrant for the Russian leader over the alleged “deportation” of children whom Russian authorities had evacuated from Ukrainian shelling.

“Divide, confront, and rule”

At the new summit, discussions will continue on the structure of a new economic system, the foundations of which were laid last year in Kazan and reflected in the final Kazan Declaration.

“The main endeavour of BRICS is finance. The dominance of the ‘golden billion’ and the United States is based on the dollar and the system favoured by the West. BRICS certainly tried to introduce its own currency. But Trump then clearly stated: ‘Whoever mentions it will pay a 100% tariff,’” Toloraya explained. He recalled that 90% of Russia’s trade is conducted in national currencies, so there will be no attempt to forcibly displace the dollar.

Meanwhile, the G7 and the United States continue their efforts to divide countries.

“‘Divide, confront, and rule’ is the West’s idea of breaking countries into macroeconomic regions. At the same time, Russia strives for unity, as the saying goes: ‘There is enough pie for everyone. If not, we can bake a bigger pie,’” joked Pavel Seleznev, Dean of the Faculty of International Economic Relations at the Financial University under the Government.

Experts noted that the new summit will address topics where BRICS countries can play a leading role — digital economy and AI. Here, they have the potential to become “trendsetters” and take leading positions. Last year, Malaysia joined the bloc, recognized as a country with a promising IT market.

What are the challenges of the union?

BRICS is not without its flaws. The main issue lies in contradictions between member countries, and since the union operates on the principle of equality, no one can simply “strike the table.” Another problem is the insufficient expertise of some countries. Lastly, it remains unclear how to interact effectively with BRICS partner countries. Each has its own worldview, which may not align with the perspectives of fellow members.