Doha, December 10 (QNA) - A host of officials and experts affirmed that the BRICS group represents a new opportunity to forge trade and investment alliances to enhance economic and social development opportunities in a multi-polar world.
This came in a panel discussion held during the Doha Forum 2023, under the theme: "BRICS Rising Influence in a Multipolar International Order," emphasizing that BRICS is an economic and investment platform that underpins the shared interests in a multi-polar world.
They added that the alliance is characterized by flexibility in cooperation and concurrence which allows plurality and strives to contribute to building a more just and equitable world.
BRICS group, which includes Brazil, Russia, India, China, and South Africa, has a population density approaching 40 percent of the world's population, as well as its control over more than 25 percent of the gross domestic product (GDP) and a roughly 20 percent of international trade, whose countries abound with natural resources, such as agriculture in Brazil, minerals in South Africa, energy in Russia, as well as technology, industry, and agriculture in China and India.
BRICS countries are characterized by a strategic geographical location constituting a critical forum for cooperation in supply chains and supplies.
HE Minister of Foreign Affairs in the Republic of Sri Lanka, Ali Sabry, said BRICS represents a non-competitive collaborative platform to bolster trade and industry in a multi-polar world, pointing out that BRICS countries have numerous opportunities to forge a collaboration-based alliance in a multi-polar world.
HE State Minister of Foreign Affairs, Ministry of Foreign Affairs of the Federal Democratic Republic of Ethiopia, Mesganu Arga Moach, stressed that BRICS should necessarily demonstrate that it is not an adverse to the Western system, but rather a new bloc that seeks to accomplish economic and investment development to achieve the hopes and aspirations of nations.
He pointed out that BRICS countries pursue economic reform and equity, along with political inclusiveness, noting that the high population density in those countries deserves better representation.
The countries also abound with a great deal of economic development prompting fair engagement in the global decision.
In the same context, Chair Professor of Soochow University, Victor Gao, emphasized that the idea of the BRICS group is based on a multipolar world that does not pose a threat to any country, but rather offers new opportunities for cooperation, pointing out that BRICS operates in the spirit of cooperation to achieve security and stability, as well as strengthen progress and technological evolution. He noted that the BRICS countries proved their vitality in expansion as applications for joining this group have increased.
The number of BRICS group is anticipated to reach 25 countries during the upcoming period, Gao affirmed, adding that countries like Nigeria and Indonesia are expected to join the group.
Commenting on the concern about China's hegemony over the bloc, Gao said that there is no concern about that since Chinas approach is primarily based on partnership and not hegemony, confirming that he does not expect China would control other countries.
He pointed out that BRICS countries focus on the economy as a critical factor and a driving force in which relationships among them are based on consensus and they deem differences and consensus as a real matter that bolsters them, as the bloc aims to enhance development and overcome problems, challenges, as well as economic and financial interconnectedness.
For her part, Chair of Adrienne Arsht Latin America Center Advisory Council, Erika Mouynes, pointed out that the idea of the BRICS group is primarily based on forging trade and investment alliances to enhance economic and social development opportunities.
(QNA)