Indonesia has become a full member of the BRICS group, announced Brazil on.
Indonesia Joins BRICS Bloc as Full Member
Indonesia has become a full member of the BRICS group, announced Brazil on. It is the largest economy and most populous nation in Southeast Asia and its entry to the BRICS bloc will further deepen the Global South cooperation. BRICS was formed by Brazil, Russia, India and China in 2009, and South Africa was added in 2010.
BRICS is an intergovernmental organisation that was founded as a counterweight to the Group of Seven, comprised of developed nations, that had ceased to serve developing countries. Last year, the alliance expanded to embrace Iran, Egypt, Ethiopia and the United Arab Emirates. Turkey, Azerbaijan and Malaysia have formally applied.
BRICS term was originally coined by Goldman Sachs economist Jim O’Neill in a 2001. The first BRIC Summit was held in Russia’s Yekaterinburg in 2009. The 16th BRICS Summit was being held under Russia’s chairmanship in Kazan in 2024.
BRICS & USA
In recent years, some BRICS members, particularly Russia and China, have been exploring alternatives to the US Dollar, with India remaining an exception. In December, Donald Trump, the next president of the United States, said that BRICS countries can ‘go find another sucker’ if they cannot commit that they will neither create a new currency of their own, nor back any other currency “to replace the mighty US Dollar”.
“We require a commitment from these Countries that they will neither create a new BRICS Currency, nor back any other Currency to replace the mighty U.S. Dollar or, they will face 100% Tariffs and should expect to say goodbye to selling into the wonderful U.S. Economy,” Trump warned. BRICS is the only major international group of which the United States is not a part.
