BRICS condemn rising tariffs and destruction of multilateralism

The leaders of the BRICS, the bloc of emerging countries, condemned, at the 17th summit held in Brazil until this Monday, the increase in customs tariffs planned by the President of the United States, Donald Trump – who chose to hold the meeting to announce additional tariffs of 10% on the bloc's exports to the United States.

The bloc issued a statement expressing “serious concerns” about the tariff hikes, which it said were “inconsistent with WTO (World Trade Organization) rules.” In an indirect dig at the United States (since Trump’s country is not named), the bloc said the restrictions “threaten to reduce global trade, disrupt global supply chains and introduce uncertainty.”

The United States purchased almost $650 billion from EU countries in 2023, well above the $294.9 billion in the opposite direction. Data from the World Trade Organization (WTO) indicate trade surpluses with Brazil and the United Arab Emirates (UAE), with US imports in the latter case being close to zero. Thus, the $24.9 billion sold to the UAE has almost no counterpart in imports, while with Brazil the surplus is around $3 billion.

The situation is far less positive for the US coffers. In terms of relations with China, the trend is more than clear, with the Asian giant exporting 448 billion dollars (381.2 billion euros) compared to 147.8 billion dollars (125.9 billion euros) in the opposite direction.

Indonesia also has a nearly unidirectional relationship, with exports of $28.1 billion (€23.9 billion) and no significant counterpart in imports from the US. India, on the other hand, has a surplus of goods of around $40 billion, almost as much as the value of its exports to the US in 2023.

Countries like Iran and Russia, heavily penalized by US-led international sanctions, have almost nonexistent trade flows with the Americans.

President Luiz Inácio Lula da Silva stated that denialism and unilateralism are “eroding the advances of the past and sabotaging our future.” The statements were made at the opening of a plenary session to discuss plans to address climate change and expand access to healthcare, especially in developing nations, two of the priorities of the Brazilian presidency of the group. Lula welcomed multilateral actions as a basis for advances in climate protection and health promotion, achieved in recent decades, while also pointing out setbacks: the global warming, the president said, is occurring at a faster pace than expected, while investments in fossil fuels remain high and show no signs of decreasing. “We need to have access to and develop technologies that allow us to participate in all stages of the value chains. 80% of carbon emissions are produced by fewer than 60 companies. Most of them operate in the oil, gas and cement sectors,” said Lula, as quoted by the Brazilian press. Lula did not mention, however, that some of the largest producers and consumers of oil and gas on the planet were seated at the summit table: Saudi Arabia, the United Arab Emirates, Russia and China.

The group’s 31-page statement, which also took aim at Israeli military actions in the Middle East, spared its founding member, Russia, from criticism and mentioned Ukraine only once. Lula da Silva, Brazil’s president and host, also criticized NATO’s decision to increase defense spending to 5 percent of member states’ GDP, noting that it is “always easier to invest in war than in peace.” The statement also criticized the attacks on Iran without mentioning the United States or Israel, the two nations that carried them out.

BRICS leaders expressed “grave concern” over the humanitarian situation in Gaza, called for the release of all hostages, a return to the negotiating table and reaffirmed their commitment to the two-state solution.

The bloc has doubled in size in the past year, and analysts say the resulting lack of cohesion could jeopardize its ability to become a pillar of global affairs. They also see the summit's moderate agenda as an attempt by member states to stay under Trump's radar – which, in any case, has failed. Western analysts stress that the absence of the Russian and Chinese presidents implies a 'decoupling' of the bloc itself, but statements from Moscow and Beijing suggest otherwise.

Founded by Brazil, Russia, India, China and South Africa, the BRICS bloc last year added Indonesia, Iran, Egypt, Ethiopia and the United Arab Emirates. It also created a new category of 'strategic partners', which includes Belarus, Cuba and Vietnam.