China's `Brics Plus' could be a huge minus for India
BEIJING: In a move that could significantly dilute India's role in Brics, China's foreign minister Wang Yi has come up with the idea of extending the remit of the bloc by inviting other developing countries under a new banner --`Brics Plus'.
Addressing his annual press conference on Wednesday on the sidelines of the National People's Congress (the Chinese parliament), Wang said China would “explore the modalities for Brics Plus to hold outreach dialogues with other major developing countries“.
“We hope to widen our circle of friends to turn it into the most impactful platform for South-South cooperation,“ he said. China, which is the rotating president of Brics this year, will host the next summit in September. Analysts, however, are of the view that China is trying to expand its influence by inviting its allies, and the move might result in the dilution of the role played by India and other countries in the bloc of five countries -Brazil, Russia, India, China and South Africa.
“India will be the worst-affected. After expansion, the organisation will lose its focus and coherence on development issues and become more like a political platform for China,“ said Mohan Malik, professor at Asia-Pacific Center for Security Studies at Honolulu.
China may invite pro-Beijing countries like Pakistan, Sri Lanka and Mexico to join the grouping, Malik said. China may be trying to turn Brics into a China-centric organisation, he said. “ At the 2016 BRICS summit in Goa, Beijing was successful in thwarting India's attempts to isolate and condemn its ally Pakistan over cross-border terrorism,“ Malik pointed out. “BRICS Plus would nip in the bud any attempts at isolating China and its friends.“
Wang said China plans to introduce a system of standalone meets of foreign ministers, hold sports and cultural events among Brics countries.
Analysts said China might find it difficult to obtain India's approval to the idea of BRICS Plus. “India surely will not be interested in expansion at this time,“ Swaran Singh, professor at the School of International Studies at JNU told TOI. “Brics will be focussed on consolidating at this time,“ he said, pointing to political instability in Brazil, economic slowdown in South Africa, and difficult ties between India and China.
Addressing his annual press conference on Wednesday on the sidelines of the National People's Congress (the Chinese parliament), Wang said China would “explore the modalities for Brics Plus to hold outreach dialogues with other major developing countries“.
“We hope to widen our circle of friends to turn it into the most impactful platform for South-South cooperation,“ he said. China, which is the rotating president of Brics this year, will host the next summit in September. Analysts, however, are of the view that China is trying to expand its influence by inviting its allies, and the move might result in the dilution of the role played by India and other countries in the bloc of five countries -Brazil, Russia, India, China and South Africa.
“India will be the worst-affected. After expansion, the organisation will lose its focus and coherence on development issues and become more like a political platform for China,“ said Mohan Malik, professor at Asia-Pacific Center for Security Studies at Honolulu.
China may invite pro-Beijing countries like Pakistan, Sri Lanka and Mexico to join the grouping, Malik said. China may be trying to turn Brics into a China-centric organisation, he said. “ At the 2016 BRICS summit in Goa, Beijing was successful in thwarting India's attempts to isolate and condemn its ally Pakistan over cross-border terrorism,“ Malik pointed out. “BRICS Plus would nip in the bud any attempts at isolating China and its friends.“
Wang said China plans to introduce a system of standalone meets of foreign ministers, hold sports and cultural events among Brics countries.
Analysts said China might find it difficult to obtain India's approval to the idea of BRICS Plus. “India surely will not be interested in expansion at this time,“ Swaran Singh, professor at the School of International Studies at JNU told TOI. “Brics will be focussed on consolidating at this time,“ he said, pointing to political instability in Brazil, economic slowdown in South Africa, and difficult ties between India and China.
