On the imperialist BRICS summit in Kazan

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October 29, 2024

The 2024 BRICS summit in Kazan - the growth of a new imperialist grouping

by Joseph Green, Detroit Workers’ Voice

The BRICS summit met on October 22-24 in Kazan, Russia. BRICS is an organization led by several major world and regional powers who are seeking to be an alternative to Western imperialism. It is regarded by some as an anti-imperialist friend of the oppressed peoples, and an advocate of just international relations. But by meeting in Kazan while Russia continues its war on Ukraine, it shows that it is no more peaceful than any other imperialist grouping.

The origin of the BRICS goes back to 2009, when it was founded as BRIC (Brazil, Russia, India, and China). The next year it was joined by South Africa, thus coming BRICS. It has since grown further to include Iran, Egypt, Ethiopia, and the United Arab Emirates. This year it also added 13 more countries — Algeria, Belarus, Bolivia, Cuba, Indonesia, Kazakhstan, Malaysia, Nigeria, Thailand, Turkey, Uganda, Uzbekistan, and Vietnam — thus becoming BRICS+.

The day before the summit a webinar was held by the “BRICS from below” grouping of activists, who defend the interests of the people of the BRICS countries as opposed to that of the capitalist ruling classes and governments. (See https://www.bricsfrombelow.org and https://www.counterpunch.org/2024/10/20 ... artnering/). The announcement for the webinar described the grouping as follows:

• These are all, socially-repressive states, aside from Brazil and S7outh Africa.

• BRICS+ regimes often posture against Israeli genocide, yet aside from Iran, all profit from energy-supply, trade and investment relations, and for several, military deals [with Israel].

• The BRICS+ produce 29% of global GDP but 51% of greenhouse gas emissions. ...

The BRICS+ and Israel

The nature of the BRICS is demonstrated by their stand towards Israel. Earlier this month Patrick Bond, one of the main organizers of the BRICS from below movement, wrote “ ‘The blessing' for genocide: Nearly all BRICS+ regimes nurture Israel, economically” (https://www.cadtm.org/The-Blessing-for-genocide). Some excerpts follow:

The Biden-Harris genocide-facilitation team is celebrating the latest atrocities from Gaza to the West Bank to Lebanon, as is to be expected from an imperialist core power bloc lacking an iota of humanity when it comes to the peoples whom Israelis now oppress beyond comprehension.

But what also needs contemplating is a sub-set of economically-pro-Israel ruling classes where one might not expect them: within the BRICS+ bloc. Four of them are such blatant supporters that on September 27 at the United Nations, Benjamin Netanyahu painted them green with “THE BLESSING” label on a map: Egypt, Saudi Arabia, United Arab Emirates and India. ...

Beyond the obvious neighbours and India fingered by Netanyahu, there are other BRICS+ ‘blessors’ (as end-times allies of Netanyahu self-describe) witnessed in this ten-point (partial) catalogue of how war and profits make for unfortunate bedfellows:

* Russia is the #1 coal supplier to the genocide and South Africa #2 now that Colombia and Turkey have declared Boycott Divestment Sanctions BDS against Israel;

* Brazil supplies 9% of Israel’s oil while Russia operates the main shipping export terminal for one of the largest oil suppliers (Kazakhstan), and as Michael Karadjis points out, “Israel imports a small but regular amount of oil from its BRICS neighbour Egypt, via Sidi Kerir, near Alexandria, the terminus of the SUMED pipeline. Oil from BRICS members United Arab Emirates and Saudi Arabia, as well as Iraq, also feeds into this pipeline”;

* in both South Africa and Brazil, leading officials have openly bragged in recent weeks that they will not impose coal and oil sanctions on Israel, with the latter’s defense minister also opposing potential cancellation of military cooperation with Tel Aviv-based Elbit Systems (currently ‘paused’);

* India supplies vital military equipment for use in Gaza, the West Bank and now Lebanon, including Adani-Elbit’sdeadly medium-altitude, long-endurance (‘male’)drones;

* the two main parts of Israel’s main port – at Haifa – were privatised in recent years by Shanghai International Port Group and Adani, facilitating more efficient supply of weapons and ammo to the IDF;

* Chinese-Israeli trade hit a recent record of \$20 bn/annum, including $14.4 billion of exports to Israel (#1 in the world in .2022) – in spite of December 2023 claims that Chinese Cosco ships would avoid Israeli ports (a stance reversed in February);

* India is the #5 trader with Israel at nearly $5 billion; ...

On the monopoly capitalist economies and exploitative foreign relations of the BRICS

More material about the role of the BRICS in the world imperialist system can be found in previous issues of the D/SWV list, such as
"BRICS bloc's rising 'sub-imperialism': the latest threat to people and planet?", March 2013
http://www.communistvoice.org/DWV-130318.html

“Break the BRICS!” - say the BRICS-from-below activists at the Johannesburg Teach-in of July 2018
http://www.communistvoice.org/DSWV-181003.html .

A detailed study of the BRICS can be found in the book “BRICS, An Anti-Capitalist Critique” (2015, edited by Patrick Bond and Ana Garcia).

Full text of the above is at https://www.communistvoice.org/DSWV-241029.pdf <>

Picture: Four of the BRICS are such blatant supporters of Israel that on September 27 at the United Nations, Benjamin Netanyahu painted them green with “THE BLESSING” label on a map: Egypt, Saudi Arabia, United Arab Emirates and India.
https://static.timesofisrael.com/www/up ... 901211.jpg.