BRICS and invited nation to join members 

 When the leaders of the BRICS nations convened for their summit in Johannesburg last week and posed for their group photographs, it provided an insightful glimpse into the evolving landscape of the global order that Beijing is actively molding.

Standing prominently at the forefront was Xi Jinping, the formidable leader of China, encircled by a stage adorned with dignitaries hailing from burgeoning markets and developing nations across the continents of Africa, Asia, and Latin America.

Remarkably, this summit marked the largest gathering the BRICS coalition has ever orchestrated, drawing participation from over 60 nations, in addition to the established members: Brazil, Russia, India, China, and South Africa.

Notably flanking the current BRICS leadership were counterparts from nations including Argentina, Ethiopia, Iran, Saudi Arabia, Egypt, and the United Arab Emirates, all of whom received invitations to join this influential alliance.

This strategic development stands as a notable triumph for Xi Jinping, who has persistently advocated for the expansion of the BRICS consortium and its consequential influence, even in the face of hesitations expressed by fellow members such as India and Brazil.

This expansion, the first since South Africa's inclusion in 2010, promises to more than double the membership of the group, thereby vastly amplifying its global footprint—particularly within the Middle East.

In the words of Steve Tsang, the esteemed director of the SOAS China Institute at the University of London, "This achievement firmly positions China as the victor in this scenario. The inclusion of six new member states represents a significant stride in the trajectory that China has been favorably pursuing."

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For both Beijing and Moscow, this expansion represents a critical component of their strategy to transform this loose economic coalition into a formidable geopolitical counterbalance to Western powers, particularly institutions like the G7. This mission has gained even greater urgency in the past year due to China's escalating rivalry with the United States and the fallout from the Ukraine conflict, which further distanced Beijing from the Western world due to its support for Moscow.

The recent BRICS expansion, coupled with a lengthy waiting list of aspiring members, underscores that Xi Jinping's vision of an alternative world order is resonating strongly in the Global South. In this region, many countries feel marginalized within an international system that they perceive as being heavily dominated by the United States and its affluent allies.

In alignment with their call for a more substantial role in global affairs, the BRICS leaders' declaration consistently emphasized the need for "enhanced representation of emerging markets and developing nations" within international institutions, ranging from the United Nations and its Security Council to the International Monetary Fund (IMF) and the World Bank.

Xi Jinping, who peppered his summit speeches with critiques of U.S. "hegemony," celebrated this expansion as a "historic" development and "a new beginning for BRICS cooperation."

Happymon Jacob, a professor of international studies at New Delhi's Jawaharlal Nehru University, pointed out that this expansion highlights a significant shift in global geopolitical fault lines. He noted, "China's leadership in non-Western forums and among the Global South, which generally expresses dissatisfaction with U.S.-led institutions, is poised to bolster China's role as a counterweight to the United States and the prevailing world order led by the U.S."