BRICS offer hope in a time of war

Date with destiny - BRICS offer hope in a time of war

Pepe Escobar

“The context for what will be decided in Kazan this week is no less than incandescent, as the uncontrolled chaos of the Hegemon’s Forever Wars – from Ukraine to West Asia – has even materially affected the heavy work of BRICS and the necessity to build a new international system of geoeconomic relations practically from scratch,” says veteran international affairs observer Pepe Escobar, commenting on the imminent kickoff of the BRICS bloc’s long-awaited summit in Russia on October 22.
 
Citing bloc members’ broad agreement on ‘the need for a comprehensive reform of the global financial architecture to enhance the voice of developing countries and their representation’, Escobar stressed that when it comes to existing, Western-dominated institutions, “it remains clear the US has less than zero interest in a profound reform of the IMF, the World Bank and the Bretton Woods system.” Therefore, “Russia and China, especially, are fully aware that what is needed is a post-Bretton Woods.”
 
Listing off other major initiatives on the agenda in Kazan, including a cross-border payments initiative, the operation of the BRICS’ New Development Bank, dedollarization and the creation of new digital currencies’ related infrastructure, Escobar stressed that in geopolitics too, the summit is expected pump up the BRICS’ international profile, with a special session on Palestine a case in point.

“All of the above is highly significant for the BRICS context because the Forever Wars in West Asia have been seriously interfering with the work within BRICS. And on top of it, the Forever Wars, cold, hybrid, and hot, are in fact essentially directed against three BRICS members, Russia, Iran and China – not by accident described as the Top Three existential threats to the Hegemon.”  

“The stakes in Kazan could not be higher. By the end of the week the Global Majority will know whether Kazan will go down in History as the landmark of a new, emerging system of international relations, of if crass Divide and Rule tactics will keep postponing the inexorable demise of the Old Order,” Escobar summed up.