Russia’s Vladimir Putin kicks off BRICS’ most important summit yet

Vladimir Putin is pulling a power move. Nearly three years after the world slammed Russia with sanctions for invading Ukraine, Putin is hosting the BRICS summit—a massive three-day gathering in Kazan.

The guy wants everyone to know that he’s far from isolated, and he’s backed by a surprising coalition of countries, some of which are supposedly good friends of America.

The BRICS group got bigger this year, adding Egypt, Iran, Ethiopia, and the UAE. Saudi Arabia has been invited to join, and according to Russian officials, about 30 other countries want in.

It’s all part of Putin’s plan to build what he calls a “global majority,” made up of countries that don’t want to be under the thumb of America. 

This week, world leaders like China’s Xi Jinping, India’s Narendra Modi, South Africa’s Cyril Ramaphosa, and Iran’s Masoud Pezeshkian are all in the room.

Turkey’s President, Recep Tayyip Erdogan, is also hanging around. Brazil’s President, Lula da Silva, had to skip out after getting injured, but otherwise, this is the biggest international event Russia has hosted in a long tie.

BRICS: The global power play

Putin is showing that while the West tries to cut him off, there’s a whole new squad of countries ready to back him even when his mission is to dethrone NATO.

BRICS already represents 45% of the world’s population, and their combined economies are worth $28.5 trillion — about 28% of the global economy. It’s not just a group of emerging economies; it’s a serious block.

It’s no coincidence that the summit is happening just as the U.S. is getting ready for its next presidential election. If Donald Trump makes a comeback, America’s hardline support for Ukraine could weaken, and that’s music to Putin’s ears.

In a press conference last Friday, Putin pumped up BRICS, calling its economic and political clout an “undeniable fact.” He thinks that if BRICS works together, they’ll be a huge part of the “new world order.”

He also made sure to say that BRICS isn’t an anti-Western alliance, but come on, it’s clear what he’s getting at. For Putin, this summit is about flipping the script.

He’s got an International Criminal Court arrest warrant hanging over his head, his economy is hurting, and yet here he is, playing host to more than 20 heads of state in 2024.

What BRICS wants to achieve

So, what’s on the agenda for BRICS this week? Apart from Putin flexing, there’s a lot to talk about. For starters, Russia’s under heavy sanctions, and Putin’s hoping BRICS will help ease the economic pain by finding an alternative to the almighty dollar for global trade.

He’s not the only one who’d like to see the dollar take a hit. China and Iran have their own reasons to ditch it. But, there’s a problem.

China and India (two of the biggest players in BRICS) don’t exactly get along. Jim O’Neill, the former Goldman Sachs economist who coined the term “BRIC,” said that “China and India can never agree on anything.”

That rivalry has kept BRICS from fully realizing its potential. O’Neill pointed out that if China and India could actually work together, BRICS would be unstoppable. But for now, they’re trying to avoid attacking each other long enough to get anything done.

The Trump factor

While Putin is busy shaking hands in Kazan, the U.S. is getting ready for its next election, and Trump is making headlines again. Trump’s relationship with Putin is well-known.

In a recent interview, the former president claimed he had warned Putin not to invade Ukraine. In his words:

“I told him, ‘Vladimir, if you go after Ukraine, I’ll hit you so hard, right in the middle of Moscow. I said, ‘We’re friends. I don’t want to do it, but I have no choice.’ He goes, ‘No way.’ I said, ‘Way.'”

Despite this supposed tough talk, Trump has also said that if he wins the election, he would consider lifting sanctions on Russia.

This isn’t the first time Russia has been optimistic about a Trump presidency. Back in 2016, after Trump’s surprise win, Russians celebrated.

Politician Vladimir Zhirinovsky famously popped 132 bottles of champagne at the Duma, and Margarita Simonyan, the editor-in-chief of state media outlet RT, drove around Moscow with an American flag in her car window.

But those hopes quickly fizzled out when Trump slapped the heaviest sanctions Russia had seen. Now, the Kremlin is cautiously watching the U.S. election.

Trump has promised to drop tariffs on countries that ditch the U.S. dollar, which fits neatly into Putin’s BRICS agenda.

But after the disappointment of Trump’s first term, Russian officials are more reserved about getting too excited this time around.

Putin even threw out a public “endorsement” for Kamala Harris, though it was widely seen as a joke.