While the West debated ideology, the rest of the world built insurance
For much of the 21st century, BRICS was treated as a buzzword. It was a Goldman Sachs acronym, not a geopolitical threat. The bloc — Brazil, Russia, India, China, and South Africa—was seen as a collection of fast-growing economies, not a coordinated front. Western analysts dismissed it as symbolic, fractured, and ultimately unserious.
But over the past two years, that perception has quietly collapsed. BRICS is no longer theoretical. It’s functional.
In 2023, the group announced the formal addition of six new members: Saudi Arabia, Iran, the United Arab Emirates, Egypt, Ethiopia, and Argentina. With these additions, BRICS now represents over 40% of the global population and a rising share of global GDP, energy production, and trade routes. This is not a protest bloc. These nations aren’t rejecting the West—they’re building options beyond it.
The shift was subtle. No headlines. No declarations. Just quiet structural movement.
The key moment came in 2022, when the United States and Europe froze Russian foreign reserves. For much of the Global South, this was a signal: monetary neutrality could no longer be taken for granted. If it could happen to Russia, it could happen to any of them. The risk was no longer theoretical. It was strategic.
From that moment on, BRICS shifted from an acronym to an alliance.
The BRICS Foundation
The West didn’t fear BRICS. It invested in it. Multinationals rushed into BRICS economies for raw materials, labour, and fast-growing consumer markets. For decades, these countries were viewed through a lens of opportunity—not autonomy.
But by the mid-2010s, something began to shift. Annual summits became more frequent. The BRICS Development Bank (now the New Development Bank) was launched in 2015. Trade deals began to exclude the U.S. dollar. Political coordination tightened.
Then came the war in Ukraine. The freezing of Russian reserves sent a shockwave. It shattered the idea of global financial neutrality. The dollar had always been mighty. Now it was weaponized.
A loose economic identity became a survival strategy. A collection of markets became an alignment of nations. BRICS was no longer just a term for economists. It was an alliance for sovereignty.
What This Means for Canada
Canada treats BRICS as economic issues and the UAE as a diplomatic issue. Both are hedging tools.
BRICS shows quiet structures beat loud protests.
UAE shows: a story inside sovereignty beats values without borders.
Canada has multiculturalism, resources, and institutions. We just need to use them the same way.
