Bangladesh Gets Merely 'Consolation' from BRICS

At the 15th BRICS summit in South Africa, five new countries joined the bloc, strengthening the BRICS group beyond Europe and the Americas and making it the most powerful economic development alliance outside of those regions. Their goal is to further solidify their position within this bloc as the "Global South."

Before the addition of these six new countries, the BRICS already accounted for nearly 40% of the world's population. These five new nations are adding to the BRICS membership, and collectively, they cover approximately 25% of the world's land area and contribute to nearly 25% of the global GDP.

Currently, the BRICS collectively control 43% of the world's foreign exchange reserves, and 21% of the world's production of goods and services comes from these five countries. BRICS member countries have long advocated for trade, currency exchange, and their own reserves in the BRICS currency. If successful, this would allow BRICS countries to conduct business and trade in their own currencies, reducing their dependence on the dollar, according to economists.

The new full member countries—Argentina, Egypt, Ethiopia, Iran, Saudi Arabia, and the United Arab Emirates—will become effective members starting in January 2024. Additionally, another 40 countries have expressed their desire to join the BRICS, including Bangladesh.

Ahead of the summit in Johannesburg, Bangladesh was invited to become a member, and news of Bangladesh joining BRICS was circulated in the media. However, the issue of Bangladesh's participation in the BRICS summit was not discussed. Why didn't it happen? A common assumption is that all BRICS countries are economically self-reliant, and Bangladesh has not been excluded from the list for any particular reason. On the last day of the BRICS summit on August 24th, invitations were extended to these six countries to join the bloc. Cyril Ramaphosa, President of South Africa, welcomed these countries, stating, "These countries are Saudi Arabia, Iran, the United Arab Emirates, Argentina, Egypt, and Ethiopia."

While Bangladesh was previously considered for inclusion in this bloc, its name was not present in the list of the six new member countries. 

On August 22, Prime Minister Sheikh Hasina of Bangladesh traveled to South Africa to participate in the BRICS summit. Earlier this year, in June, Foreign Minister Dr. A.K. Abdul Momen mentioned that Bangladesh might gain membership in the regional economic alliance BRICS in August.

So, why did India oppose this move? The reason lies in understanding that the officials at the Bangladeshi Ministry of Foreign Affairs need to become more 'smart.' The country has been boasting its development "record" extensively. Foreigners are also chiming in with praise for its development efforts. During such times, Bangladeshi diplomats sometimes fail to realize that the compliments they receive also mean that they will be expected to sell products in a more structured manner. When the Japanese minister says, "Bangladesh will surpass Japan in terms of development," it implies that they want Bangladesh to buy cars from India or China instead of Japan.

There is a complex relationship with India in this context. India knows that Bangladesh is heavily dependent on it for most goods, except a few. When there is a shortage of a particular product, they have to supply it at higher rates, and this is even reflected in the price of onions, with a 40% tax imposed. Therefore, South Block in India perceives Bangladesh's 'economy' as pressure, and if Bangladesh becomes a BRICS member, the pressure could intensify within the BRICS framework.

A significant part of the discussion during this 3-day summit was focused on expansion. While BRICS members mostly agreed on the idea of expansion, there were disagreements among leaders about how many and how quickly new countries should be included. Despite their differences, no one at the summit specifically mentioned Bangladesh's inclusion in the BRICS.

On the second day, Chinese President Xi Jinping assured Prime Minister Sheikh Hasina of Bangladesh during a comprehensive meeting. According to the foreign minister, "On the issue of the inclusion of new members in BRICS, China will support Bangladesh." This statement was made during the one-hour discussion between President Xi and Prime Minister Hasina.

The Foreign Minister had hoped for such a message, and perhaps this time Bangladesh may become a member of BRICS. However, on the final day of the BRICS summit, among the countries invited to join the coalition, Bangladesh's name is not mentioned. Former Ambassador Humayun Kabir said that among the countries initially invited to BRICS, all of them have stronger economies and better economic conditions compared to Bangladesh.

"The second reason may be that we have shown interest recently. Showing interest and mobilizing for it is a different matter. This means that all the countries capable of creating an alternative economic framework have been invited to join BRICS this time. Has Ethiopia achieved that capability? Just a few days ago, the country was described as 'the hungriest country in the world,' depending on the aid of developed countries for the survival of millions of people. A famous image spread worldwide, 'Vultures and Human Child,' depicts the scene! Ethiopia has succeeded in creating an alternative economic framework, while Bangladesh has not. This is the harsh reality.

Bangladesh was taken into consideration, and it was said that if four countries were included, one of them would be Bangladesh. But in reality, that hasn't been seen.

That concludes the discussion on BRICS. After that, there are some meaningless and humorous statements from some media outlets in Bangladesh. One news outlet wrote, In the briefing, the Foreign Minister said, 'The bilateral meetings with the BRICS governments and heads of state who came to BRICS in the evening have been very successful. Discussions have taken place on reducing trade deficits, and they want to buy Bangladesh's jackfruit, mangoes, and guavas!' What do you think? Where is BRICS, and where are jackfruits, mangoes, and guavas?

Stating that there has been no change in Bangladesh's position on the One China policy, he further said, "China will always be by Bangladesh's side in building a Sonar (golden) Bangla. China considers Bangladesh a strategic partner."

Dr. A. K. Abdul Momen further said, "On the other hand, in the evening, there is a dinner hosted in honor of the governments and heads of state who have come to BRICS. Prime Minister Narendra Modi of India, who was in the chair there, got up and exchanged pleasantries with Prime Minister Sheikh Hasina."

The statement that Prime Minister Narendra Modi 'got up from the chair' implies a diplomatic courtesy. It's similar to the customary etiquette where, in any event, women are invited to sit before their male counterparts. Such actions are taken to initiate a meeting or conversation when approaching someone or speaking to them. It would be foolish or impolite to insist on this point, which the reporter of that news media does not know.

Determining the steps Bangladesh needs to take before joining BRICS is not the responsibility of the general public; it's a task for the Cabinet and diplomats to decide. However, from the point of view of the actual analysis of the world situation, it can be clearly said that even if the emotional common people are drawn in favor of structural development with loans from various economic groups, banks, and organizations around the world, it does not work at the international level.

In the competitive global market, no country can always maintain a 'balance' in the buying and selling of goods. To survive in the market, you sometimes have to 'defeat' your 'economic opponents' in an 'economic battle.' In the end, you have to lean toward one side or another in any judgment.

The original article was written by the author and researcher, Monjurul Haque. It has been translated from Bengali to English.