Opinion | Both G7 and BRICS lack the dominance to resurrect grand rivalries of Cold War power politics

Back-to-back recent summits – one involving the US and its friends in the rich West, another featuring China and other emerging powers – have stoked talk of bloc-based confrontation

In reality, a united front is an illusion for groupings like the EU, while emerging powers seeking a bigger say in the international system don’t wish to confront the US

Reading Time:4 minutes

Published: 1:30am, 4 Jul 2022

“[We should] support each other on issues concerning core interests, practise true multilateralism … reject hegemony, bullying and division,” Chinese President Xi Jinping said in his keynote speech at the recent BRICS summit. Warning of “dark clouds of Cold War mentality and power politics”, he zeroed in on efforts by Western powers to “stoke bloc-based confrontation by coercing other countries into picking sides, and pursue unilateral dominance at the expense of others’ rights and interests”.

Xi was joined virtually by Indian Prime Minister Narendra Modi, South Africa President Cyril Ramaphosa, Brazil’s President Jair Bolsonaro, and Russian President Vladimir Putin. Facing a barrage of Western sanctions following his invasion of Ukraine, Putin welcomed the high-profile event as an opportunity to rally support from fellow emerging powers.

Just days later, the Group of Seven met in Germany, where the Western bloc discussed areas of shared concerns over Russia amid the Ukraine conflict and launched the “Partnership for Global Infrastructure and Investment” initiative to counter China’s economic influence.

During the summit, European Commission president Ursula von der Leyen confidently projected a united front by declaring that, “Democracies, when they work together, provide the single best path to deliver results for our people and people all over the world.”

On the surface, the BRICS and G7 groupings seem to represent rival power blocs amid the intensifying Sino-US cold war. On closer examination, however, it’s clear that many emerging powers simply seek a bigger say in the international system rather than confrontation with Washington.

Meanwhile, many in the West are divided on how best to deal with newly risen powers, especially China, given the absence of direct geopolitical conflict and the depth of bilateral economic relations.

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