00:00And to go deeper on the analysis of this year's BRICS Summit, we are joined by international
00:04law expert Dr. Yvonne Tellez.
00:06Hello, Yvonne.
00:08Welcome to From the South.
00:09Hello.
00:10Good morning, Luis.
00:11Happy to be here.
00:12The agenda is moving forward as the BRICS 2024 Summit kickstarts.
00:18President Vladimir Putin has held bilateral talks with attending heads of states and government.
00:23What can you tell us of this year's agenda and the impact it can have as member states
00:27and partners aim to reduce inequalities in the world?
00:31Definitely, yes.
00:34We have to take into account the importance of BRICS, because the five countries that
00:41currently make up the block group represent more than 42% of the global population.
00:47That's 34% of the world's territory, 23% of the gross domestic product.
00:57And that's the 80% of the global trade.
01:01That means that the blocks, the block, the BRICS countries represent around 36.8% of
01:09the global GDP, surpassing the G7.
01:13So that's something that we have to take into account, because that could definitely impact
01:19the world order.
01:21The world order, because we are reshaping it.
01:24It's like a pivotal moment in the world order, because now with the BRICS representing
01:32and including geopolitically significant countries, the group could become a bastion for the multipolar
01:40system.
01:41And moreover, in this world right now, with the United States and its allies continue
01:48to exert pressure on the international community, BRICS offers an alternative aim at promoting
01:55sovereign equality and the diversity of civilization, allowing for new countries, global south countries,
02:03to enter into this new platform of decision.
02:08Cooperation, as you were saying Yvonne, within the BRICS format reaches many fields.
02:13Recently, the Venezuelan news media VTV signed a memorandum of understanding for cooperation
02:18with BRICS TV.
02:19With this, would they plan to face media campaigns led by Western powers against the people of
02:25the closed south and beyond?
02:26How important is BRICS' role to act as a counterweight, we could say, against Western hegemonic powers
02:32in different fields?
02:34Well, there's a lot to say, because we have to take into account as well that what we're
02:43seeing right now is emergence of this new power, new powerful states, emerging economies
02:54from the global south.
02:55And for example, talking about Venezuela or Bolivia, how strategic they are right now
03:01for the current world order.
03:03I'm talking about, for example, the oil reserves that Venezuela has and the lithium reserves
03:09that Bolivia has.
03:10So within this context, what we're seeing is that this platform, this new platform,
03:18represents like a countermeasure for this usual hegemonic status of the world order.
03:28And that means also that the new decisions that could be taken within the BRICS community
03:33and within this summit could, in a way, transform what we're seeing right now.
03:40Because that means, for example, moving away from the SWIFT platform, that means moving
03:47away from the usual markets, taking into account as well that we have China over here, and
03:53China is a primary consumer of oil power from global south.
03:58So that means that what we're doing right now is to try to counterbalance this inequitable
04:05system, this inequitable world order regarding the economic area, in the main sense.
04:14So that means that with this new platform of decision, I'm representing more than the
04:2030 percent of the gross population, it could have a great impact.
04:25And it also can act as a countermeasure for these economic sanctions that countries such
04:32as Venezuela, Cuba, Russia, and some others, Iran as well, are facing right now.
04:39And just we have to look that these powers, these countries right now, are getting together
04:47and within this platform of integration, that means that they grow stronger, even,
04:52for example, in international forums such as the United Nations.
04:58Unfortunately, as this BRICS summit takes place, the Israeli genocide against the people
05:03of Palestine continues, as well as the increased aggressions against Lebanon and Syria.
05:08This is also going to be on the table of this summit.
05:11How can BRICS help bring an end to Tel Aviv's policies and secure peace and stability in
05:16the region?
05:17Yes, that's true.
05:18What we're seeing right now is that this summit is like a key space to consolidate greater
05:29economic independence for the developing countries.
05:33That means that what we can see is probable support for Lebanon, for Palestine, from the
05:45new emergent countries, the new emergent economies, and from the countries that are seeking also
05:51not just the usual BRICS, but all these new countries that have come inside this group.
05:59This is just like a global forum, not an international organization in itself.
06:05That means that what we can see is at least an attempt to bring some kind of pacification
06:21or aims at helping build these new agreements, and of course pose again a counterviolence
06:31against, for example, Israel within the Middle East.
06:35Also, we have to take into account that that means that, for example, Iran and China are
06:41great partners of Russia, and that means that this agreement will allow and will provide
06:49also Russia, for example, with new airs of economic freshness regarding the economic
06:56sanctions that it's facing from the West.
06:58So we can see this summit is a great opportunity to see at least the first steps for a shift
07:08and a counterviolence, because it will represent some options to reshape the world order, and
07:15we have to see how many countries will be present at the summit.
07:20There's an expectancy of at least 60 countries that will come inside the summit, so that
07:26means a lot, and that means a great number of countries outside the Western and the usual
07:34international forums, so that is a representative number.
07:41Yvonne, one final question.
07:42In your opinion, what do you expect to come out from this BRICS summit in the current
07:46context that we're living in?
07:49Okay.
07:50I think that one of the first objectives that we're seeking here and that we can look at
07:59is the great opportunity for the Global South to enter, to join the bloc, and to try to
08:08build a new era of multilateralism.
08:11Why do I say this?
08:13Because it's like a moment for a global redefinition of the Global South and how the Global South
08:21is entering and playing in the international forum.
08:24Also, we're talking about not just the bloc expansion, the BRICS expansion, we're talking
08:29about the technology transfer, the alternative to the dollar, and new financing formulas.
08:36So, definitely, this shows that we can see a potential to offer more economic alternatives
08:44for the Global South, for Latin American countries, and for other developing regions.
08:48Also, what they are seeking at, and they're aiming at, to try to put a more equitable
09:00platform of exchange.
09:02So, that means, again, a counterweight to the usual, for example, IMF solutions that
09:13have only brought poverty, inequity within the regions.
09:24So, I think that this opportunity offers a chance for a deeper level of integration
09:33with a probability for establishing free trade agreements, strengthen mechanisms, for example,
09:40such as the BRICS Bank, and this alternative payment system that takes a step back from
09:48the SWIFT platform.
09:51So, I think we're talking about three different areas, and those are crucial for this new
10:00world order that we're seeking at.
10:03Thank you, Yvonne, very much for your time and your inputs here in From the South.
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