China Daily Web Editor: Wang Fan
The Fortaleza summit of the BRICS leaders is a milestone. For the first time, the meeting of the group’s five members is not merely a business forum but is branded with strong political elements. [Special coverage]
Global politics – including unrest in Iraq and Ukraine – are part of the summit discussions.
The political aspects are reflected in the Fortaleza Declaration issued by the leaders on Tuesday.
The proportion of the agenda that is devoted to political elements greatly outweighs that of previous years. For the first time the discussions include political coordination. The first part of the leaders’ private dialogue dealt with global governance and regional crises. The second part deals with economic and financial cooperation.
Observers said the inclusion of the political agenda would give developing nations an increasingly united voice, and thus more clout on major global issues.
To that end, the sixth BRICS summit has embarked on a course that positions the group for a bigger role in both the political and economic spheres of the world, and to compete with Western countries for an equal voice.
The BRICS nations account for 29.6 percent of the world’s territory, and more than 42 percent of its population. Last year, the members’ combined GDP was 21 percent of the world’s total. Despite slowing growth, the members’ economies have expanded twice as fast as those of developed countries.
Understandably, after building strong economic bonds, the BRICS group wants to see a new international political architecture to serve their long-term strategic interests.
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