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Putin is hosting the BRICS summit in Russia. What to know.

By Kelsey Ables

The Washington Post: Russian President Vladimir Putin is hosting several world leaders, including China’s Xi Jinping and India’s Narendra Modi, in Russia this week for the annual BRICS summit, a gathering of countries that Moscow is capitalizing on to bolster its image and rail against Western power.

The summit in Kazan, about 450 miles east of Moscow, comes as Russia continues its war in Ukraine, more than two and a half years after it invaded the country and sparked international outrage, and as experts say the United States’ reputation is flagging in much of the Global South over its support of Israel’s war in Gaza. BRICS, which represents countries containing nearly half the world’s population, has been described by some as a potential rival to U.S. global dominance.

BRICS stands, in part, for Brazil, Russia, India and China — the original members of the group, which had its first official summit in 2009 in Yekaterinburg, Russia. South Africa was invited to join the following year, adding the “S” to the acronym.

The term dates back to a 2001 research paper by Jim O’Neill, then-head of Global Economic Research at Goldman Sachs, which looked at the four rapidly growing economies as “key drivers of future global economic growth,” per a statement from the financial institution.

In the paper, O’Neill predicted that, over the next 10 years, BRIC countries, especially China, would grow to represent a larger proportion of world GDP and advised that world policymaking forums be reorganized to incorporate their representatives.

But according to O’Neill in a recent opinion piece, BRICS has since achieved little other than to annually decry its members’ lack of representation in global institutions.

“Meanwhile, the BRICS have done nothing to effect meaningful organizational or structural change within international institutions,” he wrote, contending that Russia’s war on Ukraine coupled with the rise of nationalistic leaders within BRICS and elsewhere meant that “international institutions have been rendered even less effective.”

Which countries are in BRICS?

In addition to its five longtime members, BRICS now also includes Iran, Egypt, Ethiopia and the United Arab Emirates. This week’s summit is the first since the bloc’s expansion, which Xi hailed last year as a “historic” moment that marked a “new starting point for BRICS cooperation.”

Moscow has seized on the expansion of BRICS as a sign of its growing power, but the risks of joining a group that increasingly appears to spearhead Chinese and Russian ambitions to end American global dominance may deter some nations. Kazakhstan said it would refrain from joining, local media reported. Indonesia and Algeria have stated they would not be joining any time soon. Argentina also declined its invitation. Saudi Arabia participates in BRICS events but has yet to formalize its membership.

Up to 30 countries have expressed interest in joining, according to Putin. Among them is Turkey, which applied for membership, the Kremlin announced in September, and would be the first NATO member to join.

The Kremlin has announced that the BRICS summit would discuss a formula for second-tier “partners” to become full-fledged members. Thirteen new potential members have been approved, according to Russian presidential aide Yuri Ushakov.

Who will be attending this year’s BRICS summit?

Of 38 countries invited to the summit, 24 will send their leaders, and 32 are expected to participate in total, The Washington Post reported. Leaders from most member states are attending, including South African President Cyril Ramaphosa, Iranian President Masoud Pezeshkian, Egyptian President Abdel Fatah El-Sisi, Ethiopian Prime Minister Abiy Ahmed, and UAE President Mohamed bin Zayed al-Nahyan. Brazilian President Luiz Inácio Lula da Silva canceled his trip to the summit after an accident, so Foreign Minister Mauro Vieira will represent Brazil instead.

Several leaders of countries outside BRICS are also in Kazan, including Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan, Uzbekistan President Shavkat Mirziyoyev and Vietnamese Prime Minister Pham Minh Chinh.

U.N. Secretary General António Guterres will attend, too, the U.N. said Tuesday, a move that drew criticism from Ukraine.

Why is the BRICs summit important to Putin?

The summit is an opportunity for Putin to show that he is not isolated after his invasion of Ukraine, despite Western sanctions, and to showcase BRICS as a counterpoint to U.S. global power. Alexander Gabuev, analyst at the Berlin-based Carnegie Russia Eurasia Center think tank, told The Post that Moscow is seeking to spread a narrative that “Russia is far from isolated” and “at home with the global majority.”

It marks a notable shift in optics from last year, when Putin could not travel to the BRICS summit because of an arrest warrant from the International Criminal Court for alleged war crimes in Ukraine, which would have obliged the host country, South Africa, to arrest him.

Are there differences inside the summit?

While BRICS has appeal to many Global South countries, not all members are on board with Russia’s anti-Western agenda. Analysts, speaking to The Post, suggested that China, Russia and Iran are pushing that course, but countries like Brazil, India and South Africa seek a neutral approach.

During a news conference Monday, White House National Security Council spokesman John Kirby advised against looking at the summit “as some sort of coming-out party for Mr. Putin and for Russia” and said the United States does not view BRICS as threat.

“Russia is increasingly isolated on the world stage,” he added. “There’s no question about that.”

Robyn Dixon contributed to this report.