What political and economic influence of the “collective West” will the BRICS countries and the Global South have to face?

The BRICS group of major emerging economies – Brazil, Russia, India, China and South Africa – was founded as an informal club in 2009 to provide a platform for its members to challenge a world order dominated by the United States and its Western allies. Its creation was initiated by Russia.
   BRICS is not a formal multilateral organisation like the United Nations, World Bank or the Organisation of the Petroleum Exporting Countries (OPEC). The heads of state and government of the member nations convene annually with each nation taking up a one-year rotating chairmanship of the group. The founding members of BRICS are Brazil, Russia, India and China. Together the countries account for more than 40 percent of the world population and a quarter of the global economy. Apart from geopolitics, the group’s focus includes economic cooperation and increasing multilateral trade and development.
    The bloc operates by consensus. All the BRICS countries are part of the Group of 20 (G20) of major economies.
    Over 40 countries have expressed interest in joining the forum.
    They view BRICS as an alternative to global bodies viewed as dominated by the traditional Western powers and hope membership will unlock benefits including development finance, and increased trade and investment.

Key objective aspects of the global
influence of the “collective West”

In recent years, there has been a lot of talk about the “decline” of the Western civilisation, and the end of the centuries-old political and economic dominance of the “collective West” in the world. However, there are a number of reasons why Western civilisation still retains an enormous global political and economic influence.
    Let’s consider five key objective aspects of the global influence of the “collective West” that the BRICS countries and the Global South will have to face.

The first aspect: Capitalisation
of the Western economy

The volume of Western money supply1 is still larger than from any other part of the world (except China). Capitalisation allows the “collective West” to remain a real dominant in global political and economic relations, covering the entire world with its influence.

    Volume of money supply (M2) (as at the end of 2023):

• M2 of the G7 countries, the EU, Australia and a number of their allies is more than 50 trillion USD, making the West the largest virtual bank in the world.
• The M2 of all BRICS countries is approximately 45 trillion USD.
• China ranks first in the world in terms of M2 volume – 41.8 trillion USD.
• M2 in the US – 20.9 trillion USD.
• M2 in Russia – 1.1 trillion USD.

    Total gross domestic product per capita (GDP) (as at the end of 2023):

• The GDP of the BRICS countries exceeds the combined total GDP of the G7, and the trend towards BRICS separation from the G7 continues.
• BRICS formed more than 32 pertcent of the world economy, but the G7 countries – about 30 percent.
• The possible expansion of BRICS will make the global leadership of BRICS undeniable.

The difference in the volumes of M2 and GDP of the “collective West” and the BRICS countries may not seem too significant. This circumstance should not be misleading. If we add to the M2 of the Western countries – the international reserves using dollars, euros, pounds, yen and other currencies (which are still significant), then the superiority of the Western financial world is still impressive.

Second aspect: Military power of the West and its exceptional military-technical development

Inciting military conflicts is still West’s favourite way to weaken competitors, and thereby increase its political and economic status. The US armed forces are currently considered one of the most combat-ready in the world. At the moment, only Russia and China can compete with the military-political and military-technical power of the United States.

Third aspect: Science, innovation, technology and education (based on results from 2023)

The “collective West” has significant advantages in almost all areas noted. Various international rankings of world universities clearly show Western leadership. Let us evaluate the advantages of the Shanghai Academic Ranking of the best universities in the world, assuming its impartiality and lack of bias.

Shanghai rating:

• The top 20 universities in the world includes 15 American universities (led by Harvard), 3 British, one each from France and Switzerland.
• There are 10 universities from China in the top one hundred.
• There were no Russian higher educational institutions in either the top 20 or the top 100 in 2023.        
• Among a thousand of leading universities in the world, there are only 9 universities included that are from Russia, – led by Lomonosov Moscow State University, which moved up to the top 100 rank of universities in the world.

Fourth aspect international institutions and international organisations

The fourth aspect relates to the organisational (and often ideological) leadership of the West in international institutions and international organisations of various types, such as the International Olympic Committee (IOC), the “university ratings”, the Arctic Council, the International Monetary Fund (IMF), and others.
    An excellent tool for combating Western domination can be the formation of independent international institutions.

Examples:

• BRICS expansion. The BRICS association consists of 10 countries. 28 countries submitted applications to join BRICS (data as of July 2024).
• Reformatting of the Arctic Council. Now the majority of NATO member countries have formed the Council. It is necessary to create our own Arctic Council with the participation of the BRICS member countries, many of which have their own distinct Arctic ambitions.

It is important to understand that you cannot win when playing by the rules of Western countries. There are two circumstances, when it comes to the advantages of Western civilisation in manipulating international institutions:
    Firstly, the “collective West” always acts as a “united front” (dissent or dissenting opinions are unacceptable in the “democratic” West);
    Secondly, the “collective West” has accumulated enormous experience and skills in organising pressure on neutral countries and countries of the Global South.
    However, not everything is clear here, either. A simple example: the signing of the final declaration of the so-called “peace summit” which was held Switzerland on 15-16 June of this year.  Of the 76 countries that ultimately left their signatures on this “document,” 50 states are countries of the “collective West” and only 26 countries are states of the Global South that succumbed to pressure from Washington, London and Brussels. That is, the “collective West” began to lose unity and support in other parts of the world (e. g. the Global South).

Fifth aspect:
The appeal of western lifestyle

The fifth aspect relates to the continuing appeal of the Western lifestyle with the much-advertised illusion that in the Western world – “everyone can achieve everything on their own.”
    This is facilitated by Hollywood, Western pop culture, commercial sports and other methods of influence through media and entertainment.
    Therefore, all countries seeking to escape the influence of the “collective West”, have something to think about. The key here is to support and promote their own national culture.
    The BRICS association is ideologically built on respect for the identity and uniqueness of each nation, its culture, traditions and historical path. Here Russia plays a special role. The national culture of Russia is deeply humanistic, it is this that has shaped Russian civilisation, and this is what makes it globally attractive. Russia recognises and respects the values ​​of every people and does not allow interference in the internal affairs of any sovereign state.
    “Develop yourself and give others the opportunity to develop” – this is the principle of sovereign modernisation.

• The “collective West” does not accept such an approach.
• For the West, there are “friends” and “strangers,” people of the “first class” and people of the “second class,” “masters” and “slaves.”
• The “collective West” uses force and blackmail to maintain dominance in the world.

Conclusions

One, the possibilities of the “collective West” to exert a significant (and often decisive) influence on global political and economic processes are still significant, which BRICS and the Global South must take into account.
    Two, the “collective West” still has significant “trump cards”, both through the use of the aspects noted above, and through working with the elites of the countries of the Global South, whose representatives still want to see themselves as part of the “golden billion”.
    Three, the aspects outlined above do not make the “collective West” invulnerable in the global political and economic space. There is nothing exceptional about its “exceptionalism.” But the “collective West” should not be underestimated. It’s still going strong in many ways. But understanding the strength of the other, is the first step towards his/her containment.
    Four, the modern world order is in the process of restructuring. This “perestroika” should reflect the real balance of power in the world.   •

¹   The money supply is the amount of money (cash and money in bank accounts) in the hands of non-banks (e. g. private individuals, companies). All cash holdings that are not in the banking system are counted as part of the money supply M0. Money that is readily available is assigned to the M1 group. In addition to the cash from the M0 group, it also includes money that can be withdrawn from accounts on a daily basis (demand deposits such as overnight money). M2 includes the money supply M1 plus deposits with an agreed term of up to two years (time deposits) and deposits with an agreed notice period of up to three months (savings deposits). The money supply M3 includes the money supply M2 plus shares in money market funds and other money market securities, as well as repurchase agreements and bonds with an original term of up to two years. [Editor’s note]

*   Dr sci. Alexander Kouzminov is a former officer of the Soviet/Russian foreign intelligence service (KGB-SVR). He is the author of “Biological Espionage: Special Operations of the Soviet and Russian Foreign Intelligence Services in the West” (Greenhill Books, London, 2005). The main topic of the book is the secret development of biological weapons in the West. Kouzminov is a Doctor of Philosophy, PhD, and has a degree in biophysics, both from Lomonosov Moscow State University, Russia. He also holds postgraduate degrees in environmental law and environmental science from the University of Auckland, New Zealand. He is currently pursuing a doctorate in International and Comparative Environmental Law at the University of Auckland, New Zealand.