Economist Jim O’Neil, who first coined the term BRICS in 2001, told Reuters the idea BRICS being a genuine global club is “out there with the fairies” and “not feasible.”
“The idea that the BRICS can be some genuine global economic club, it’s obviously a bit out there with the fairies in the same way that the G7 can be, and it’s very disturbing that they see themselves as some kind of alternative global thing, because it’s obviously not feasible,” O’Neill said.
BRICS was first formed in 2009 in the wake of the 2008 global recession and originally had four member states – Brazil, Russia, India, and China. It has grown substantially over the past 20 years, adding South Africa in 2010, and since then has grown to include Iran, Saudi Arabia, the United Arab Emirates, Ethiopia, and Egypt.
According to O’Neil, BRICS as a group has not achieved much over the past 15 years, and added the alliance is more symbolic than anything.
“It seems to me basically to be a symbolic annual gathering where important emerging countries, particularly noisy ones like Russia, but also China, can basically get together and highlight how good it is to be part of something that doesn’t involve the U.S. and that global governance isn’t good enough,” O’Neil said.
The relationship between China and India – the two economic powerhouses of the group – has been mired with disputes over territory over recent years. O’Neil said he would take the alliance seriously when both countries are actually able to work together effectively.
“I will take the BRICS group seriously when I see signs that the two countries that really matter – China and India – are actually really trying to agree on things, rather than effectively trying to confront each other all the time,” O’Neil said.
Tensions could be beginning to ease between China and India, however, after China’s President Xi Jinping and India’s Prime Minister Narendra Modi came to an agreement over the long-running border disputes on Wednesday.
According to the Associated Press, the two leaders met for the first time in five years and this could spell the end of a four-year standoff between their respective militaries along their shared Himylayan border, which China has laid claim to.
“It’s important for both sides to shoulder our international responsibilities, set an example for boosting the strength and unity of the developing countries, and contribute to promoting multi-polarization and democracy in international relations,” Xi said.
India’s Foreign Secretary Vikram Misri told reporters the pact will have a positive impact on regional and global peace and prosperity. However, he did not detail how exactly the border dispute would be resolved, and if the tens of thousands of troops still stationed there would be pulled back.
“The two leaders affirmed that stable, predictable, and amicable bilateral relations between India and China, as two neighbors and the two largest nations on earth, will have a positive impact on regional and global peace and prosperity,” Misri said.
Met President Xi Jinping on the sidelines of the Kazan BRICS Summit.
India-China relations are important for the people of our countries, and for regional and global peace and stability.
Mutual trust, mutual respect and mutual sensitivity will guide bilateral relations. pic.twitter.com/tXfudhAU4b
— Narendra Modi (@narendramodi) October 23, 2024
#WATCH | Prime Minister Narendra Modi holds a bilateral meeting with Chinese President Xi Jinping in Kazan, Russia on the sidelines of the BRICS Summit.
(Source: DD News/ANI) pic.twitter.com/WmGk1AlSwW
— ANI (@ANI) October 23, 2024
#WATCH | Kazan, Russia: During the bilateral meeting with PM Modi, Chinese President Xi Jinping says, "It's my great pleasure to meet you in Kazan. It's the first time for us to have a formal meeting in five years time. Both the people in our two countries and the international… pic.twitter.com/NCUm2DVmQY
— ANI (@ANI) October 23, 2024
Russian President Valdimir Putin seemed confident BRICS would continue to expand, and stated on Wednesday there are over 30 countries currently wanting to join BRICS, according to a report from DP International.
“It would undoubtedly be wrong to ignore the unprecedented interest of the countries of the Global South and east in strengthening their contacts with BRICS,” Putin said.
The summit’s agenda is breaking away from Western-led financial institutions, reducing the reliance on the U.S. dollar and the influence of the SWIFT system. Putin reportedly wants stronger financial bonds between the members.
Putin said Wednesday the U.S. dollar is being used as a weapon, adding he does not reject using the dollar but feels forced to look for an alternative, because Russia is not able to work with U.S. dollars.
“The [U.S.] dollar is used as a weapon, it is true and we see that. I think it is a great mistake by those who do it, since the use of the dollar, which is still the most important tool in global finance, and its use as a political tool undermines trust in this currency, thereby reducing its capabilities. We are not the ones who do that. It’s others. We are not rejecting the dollar or fighting against it, but if they don’t let us work with it, what else should we do? We should seek other alternatives and this is exactly what we do,” Putin said.
JUST IN:
Russian President Putin says it's a "great mistake" to use the US dollar as a weapon. pic.twitter.com/4J3KU1Z6U7
— BRICS News (@BRICSinfo) October 23, 2024
Ulrich Schmid, professor of Russian studies at the University of St. Gallen in Switzerland, told France 24’s Eve Irvine the West should not overestimate the significance of the BRICS summit because the member states have clashing agendas, making any real progress slow.
“We do have very diverging agendas among the member states. So, for instance, Russia and Iran are extremely interested to create alternative trade platforms, alternative payment systems to evade the heavy sanctions they’re under … At the same time we have other countries who are just in favor of multilateral world orders, such as Brazil or India, and they at the same time want to continue to have very good relations also with Western countries, including the United States,” Schmid said.
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]]>As Statista’s Felix Richter reports, the expansion of BRICS beyond founding members Brazil, Russia, India and China as well as South Africa, which joined in 2010, aims to strengthen its influence as a global economic and political force, providing a counterweight to the G7 and other Western-led institutions.
The group seeks to promote a more multipolar world, reducing the dominance of the United States and its allies.
Speaking on the expansion of the BRICS, South African president Cyril Ramaphosa said at a press briefing last year: “We shared our vision of BRICS as a champion of the needs and concerns of the peoples of the Global South. These include the need for beneficial economic growth, sustainable development and reform of multilateral systems.”
As Richter shows in the chart below, the new, expanded BRICS represent roughly 45 percent of the world’s population and 35 percent of global GDP when measured at purchasing power parity.
You will find more infographics at Statista
With the addition of Iran and the United Arab Emirates, the bloc has grown its combined oil production by nearly 50 percent and now accounts for almost 30 percent of global oil output, according to the Energy Institute.
In terms of exports, the group’s footprint is relatively small.
Last year, its nine members accounted for just 22 percent of global merchandise exports, with China alone accounting for nearly two thirds of the bloc’s exports.
Speaking of China: despite all claims of BRICS being “an equal partnership of countries that have differing views but have a shared vision for a better world,” as South Africa’s president Cyril Ramaphosa put it last year, it’s hard to ignore China’s outsized role within the group, both in terms of economic and political power.
Measured at purchasing power parity, China’s GDP is larger than the combined GDP of the remaining eight BRICS members, making it hard to imagine the country not wielding that power in negotiations within the bloc.
]]>For several years, Russia and other BRICS member nations have been working on an alternative to the Western-controlled SWIFT international settlement system. Russia was banned from SWIFT following its invasion of Ukraine, but now there is a new system emerging from BRICS that threatens to make SWIFT obsolete.
If the new payment system is a success, it will render Federal Reserve Notes (FRNs) obsolete as well. The world will no longer be held hostage by the so-called petrodollar, which reports warn could have massive global market ramifications.
The West’s continued sanctions on Russia have only hastened the speed at which Russia is developing this new BRICS payment system. Its design will promote local currencies and alternative settlement methods that sidestep the U.S. dollar entirely.
Elvira Nabiullina, the governor of Russia’s central bank, says 159 countries are ready to adopt the new BRICS payment system once it goes live. It will serve as an expansion to Russia’s System for Transmitting Financial Messages (SPFS) platform as well as “an alternative to SWIFT.”
“Similar infrastructure exists in some other countries,” Nabiullina commented. “We are holding discussions on the interaction of such platforms, but here the interest and technical readiness of our partners are important.”
New payment system the priority theme of upcoming BRICS 2024 Summit
Viktoria Panova, the head of Russia’s BRICS Presidency Council, also commented that the priority issue at the upcoming BRICS 2024 Summit in October is the new BRICS payment system.
“Active efforts are underway to create a financial payment mechanism that would make cooperation between BRICS countries easier, maintaining their sovereign trade and economic exchanges,” she said.
“This issue tops the agenda because every member of the group sees it as important.”
Once the system goes live, it will provide immediate accessibility to all member nations. Once established, the system is also expected to result in expanding trade dealings for the alliance.
Depending on how well it works, there is also a solid chance that more countries will want to ditch the U.S. dollar and join themselves. Time will tell how quickly the world transitions away from U.S. dollar dominance into a new era of dollar-less global trade.
Last year’s BRICS Summit marked the first time in more than 20 years that the alliance grew. It started with Brazil, Russia, India, China and South Africa and has since added on the United Arab Emirates (UAE), Egypt, Iran and Ethiopia.
In just the past two years, BRICS has grown by leaps and bounds to become a real contender in the fight against Western hegemony. Instead of Western power dominating the planet, BRICS aims to create a global governance system of multipolarity, this being Russia’s envisioned new world order.
BRICS has increasingly made cryptocurrency its focus. Russia, the head of BRICS, recently passed legislation to legalize the use of cryptocurrency for trade settlements, which is enticing for the countries of the world to want to join.
Serbia is among the countries wanting to join BRICS next, along with Nigeria, Malaysia and Thailand. The 2024 BRICS Summit is expected to be “a massive one for the bloc’s continued growth,” to quote one media source.
It is only a matter of time before King Dollar gets reduced to rubble. Find out more at DollarDemise.com.
Sources for this article include:
]]>Amidst Bolivia’s bid to join the BRICS group, Arce, supported by international allies, addressed and defused the situation, reaffirming his commitment to democracy and swearing in new military commanders. The now dismissed military chief was ordered to six months of “preventive detention” for his role in leading the failed coup against the government.
Following Wednesday’s unsuccessful coup, observers have raised suspicion that the Central Intelligence Agency (CIA) was part of the master plan. Users on X, formerly known as Twitter, speculated that the coup attempt was secretly backed by the CIA, either because of Bolivia’s vast supplies of lithium, in retaliation for its closeness to Russia or its hostility to Israel. One X user said: “This is the second CIA-backed coup plot against the Bolivian state in under five years. Bolivia has 21 million tons of lithium reserves, the largest on the planet. Bolivia also cut off all relations with Israel in condemnation of the genocide in Gaza. Coincidence? I think not.” A comment that seemed to refer to the U.S. from Puerto Rican communist “Combate” said: “They own Argentina. They own Chile. They’re going after Bolivia.”
A different post highlighted Arce’s recent trip to St. Petersburg and talks between Bolivia and Russia on nuclear research. “Let’s not pretend we don’t know who is responsible for today’s coup, this is the work of the U.S. CIA,” the post said.
Meanwhile, Great Game India reported that Zuniga was seeking to prevent former President Evo Morales from running for president again. He claimed that the former chief would harm the country. However, a Bolivian court has already declared Morales unable to run again.
Just like X users, analysts also believe that the CIA is involved in the failed resistance. Suspicion of the U.S. in Bolivia, stemming from the CIA’s historical support for Latin American military regimes and the State Department’s involvement in several coups under Henry Kissinger, has left a lasting legacy on the political life of the South American country, which has seen over 190 coup attempts in its history. (Related: How the CIA helped discredit Hunter laptop story for Biden win.)
Also, Bolivia is a contender for BRICS membership, which is likely to take place at the BRICS leaders’ conference in Kazan, Russia on Oct. 22. Arce has been vocal about his commitment to the intergovernmental organization’s worldview. In fact, he and Russian President Vladimir Putin met at the St. Petersburg International Economic Forum last month, June 5-7, and they discussed the importance of the emerging multipolar world, free of neocolonialism and the strictures of the “rules-based order.” So, if Zuniga was successful in his coup attempt, Arce’s removal from power would be convenient for those forces targeting Brazil.
In a speech to supporters at the palace, Zuniga “saluted those officers who wear their uniform with pride and value the Armed Forces in a democratically-elected government,” Los Tiempos, a Bolivian newspaper, said. The Presidents of Brazil, Mexico and Venezuela all issued statements of support for Arce while Bolivia’s Foreign Minister Celinda Sosa Lunda urged the international community to come out in support of Arce and Bolivian democracy.
Arce celebrates Zuniga’s failed coup attempt
The former Army commander has been handed a terrorism charge, which carries 15-20 years in prison, as well as a charge for an armed uprising, which carries a sentence of 5-15 years. The Attorney General’s Office requested the six-month detention and said other government bodies, including the Defense Ministry and Interior Ministry, supported the request “due to the importance and seriousness of the events that occurred,” state prosecutor Cesar Siles said.
Within hours of the attack, Zuniga urged the soldiers to withdraw, after leaders from around the world blasted the army’s actions as illegal. Zuniga later claimed that he was following an order from Arce, who has denied having any involvement in or prior knowledge of Zuniga’s operation.
The Bolivian president hailed the withdrawal as a victory for Bolivia’s democracy and addressed the country’s citizens in the aftermath, some of whom had taken to the streets in protest of the alleged coup attempt. “Many thanks to the Bolivian people,” said Arce. “Long live democracy.”
A video has been shown on Bolivian television showing Arce facing down Zuniga and a group of soldiers in a palace hallway on Wednesday. “I am your captain, and I order you to withdraw your soldiers, and I will not allow this insubordination,” Arce said.
Zuniga was Arce’s hand-picked leader for Bolivia’s military. But as he entered the presidential palace on Wednesday, Zuniga cited the malaise in the country as the reason why he started the resistance. “The three chiefs of the armed forces have come to express our dismay. There will be a new cabinet of ministers. Surely things will change, but our country cannot continue like this any longer,” Zuniga told a local TV station. “Stop destroying, stop impoverishing our country, stop humiliating our army.”
Check out BigGovernment.news for similar stories.
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]]>According to Gromen, the writing has been on the wall for decades but only in the past couple of years has the culmination of our economic trajectory been made clear.
“What Janet Yellen’s telling you, what Jake Sullivan [National Security Adviser Jake Sullivan] is telling you, what the Department of Defense is telling you is that it’s a national security interest to get out of the Treasury export business and to get into the stuff export business again,” Gromen said. “But we can’t do that without a much weaker dollar, and the arbiter of that is going to be the price of gold. You’re seeing U.S. Treasury Secretary Janet Yellen throw 40 years of economic orthodoxy in the trash.”
His projections, which have been among the most accurate as they pertain to the Treasury, precious metals, and cryptocurrencies, paint a dark picture for the dollar but a rosy one for those whose wealth is backed to some extent by physical gold and silver.
Jonathan Rose, CEO of Genesis Gold Group, reacted to the price projections Gromen is on record as targeting. Specifically, Rose believes Gromen may be correct with his price target of $7,000-$15,000 per ounce.
“We’ve seen some ‘pie in the sky’ projections lately that have gold and silver going up tenfold, but I’m hesitant to believe in such incredible gains,” Rose said. “Luke’s targets of 2x to 5x are not only realistic but could very well be spot on, especially if BRICS nations continue their push to replace the U.S. Dollar.”
Genesis Gold Group, a faith-driven company, specializes in helping Americans protect their wealth and retirement with physical precious metals. Their free, definitive gold guide is being widely distributed, especially to those who are at or near retirement age.
Gromen believes the dollar system is dying but does not believe it’s going to be completely usurped by BRICS’ machinations. He believes the U.S. Dollar will remain the world reserve currency but that it will get re-priced in the near future.
This puts physical precious metals in a strong position, according to Rose.
“Whether the U.S. Dollar gets devalued or if it gets replaced altogether, most economists agree the logical way to store wealth is with gold and silver,” he said. “We want to help Americans protect their money today but more importantly we want them ready for the long-term.”
Receive the definitive gold guide from Genesis Gold Group and see if they can help you find the financial “safe haven” of physical precious metals.
]]>This is according to Thai government spokesman Chai Wacharonke, who said in a statement that the country’s cabinet in Bangkok has now given the go-ahead to an official letter of intent.
Chai reported that Thailand underscored in its letter the importance of multipolarity and the rising role that developing nations like Thailand are playing on the international stage. The country believes its vision for the future aligns with BRICS principles.
Thailand also identified a number of ways they believe joining BRICS would be beneficial, including the chance to participate in shaping a new world order and taking on a greater role in the international arena. If it is approved, Thailand would be the first Southeast Asian member of BRICS.
Thailand is just one of several non-member countries that has been invited to participate in a BRICS summit in October with a view to eventually joining the coalition. According to Chai, their attendance there could accelerate their application.
BRICS was originally made up of Brazil, Russia, India, China and South Africa. Earlier this year, Ethiopia, Iran, the United Arab Emirates and Egypt joined their ranks. Other countries that have expressed a desire to join include Venezuela, Senegal, Pakistan, Belarus, Cuba, Bahrain and Kazakhstan.
Is the dollar on its way out?
The addition of Thailand would bolster the growing financial power of BRICS and its desire to move away from the dollar. The coalition is considered a competitor in an international order that is currently led by developed economies in Europe and the United States. The recently expanded bloc now accounts for roughly 30% of the global economy as well as a population of 3.5 billion, or 45% of the global population. Crucially, it accounts for more than 40% of global oil production.
BRICS countries have been working toward creating a single currency that will enable them to reduce their dependence on the U.S. dollar, which could cause shock waves in the current global economic power hierarchy.
With their own common currency, BRICS countries would be able to carry out trade without using American dollars, reducing the supply and demand of the dollar and possibly weakening its value.
In addition, it would chip away at the dollar’s current position as the main reserve currency for global trade. Right now, many countries keep dollar reserves to provide economic stability; they could seek to diversify their reserves in the presence of an alternative BRICS currency, which would further weaken the dollar’s dominance and influence on the global stage.
At the same time, a common currency could enable BRICS nations to bolster their own local currencies, challenging the dollar in foreign exchange markets.
BRICS nations are also looking to move away from the dollar to diminish the impact of financial sanctions from the West, as was recently seen when the Western financial system SWIFT cut off Russia following its activities in Ukraine in 2022. Nearly half of all of Russia’s foreign currency reserves were frozen. Later the same year, the U.S. restricted exports of semiconductor technology to China.
A senior visiting fellow at the London School of Economics, Shirley Ze Yu, told Al Jazeera: “As the US weaponises the dollar in the Russian and Iran sanctions, there is increasing desire by other developing countries to seek alternative currencies for trade, investment, and reserves, as well as developing alternative multilateral clearance systems outside of SWIFT.”
As BRICS continues to expand its footprint, it is just a matter of time before the dollar is knocked off its throne.
Sources for this article include:
]]>This is according to proclamations by Russia’s executive director for the International Monetary Fund, Alexey Mozhin. He said that the downfalls of the current financial system are growing more obvious and pointed out how BRICS could step up in such an event and provide a viable alternative.
According to Mozhin, BRICS member countries could develop a currency based on those of its members, including the Indian rupee, the Chinese yuan, the Brazilian real, the South African rand and the Russian ruble.
He told the media: “Such a proposal is being discussed. In the event of the collapse of the dollar and the international monetary system, it will be necessary to turn the said BRICS accounting unit into a real currency, backed by exchange goods.”
There has been widespread support among BRICS nations and other countries for moving away from the dollar in favor of national currencies. The bloc is also reportedly looking into digital currencies as a means of providing more mechanisms for trade.
The idea is to reduce their vulnerability to fluctuations in dollar exchange rates and reduce the impact of financial sanctions from the West. This was on full display when the Western financial system cut Russia off after the Ukraine conflict broke out in 2022. Some observers feel that developing a common currency will be an uphill battle given the many geographic, political and economic disparities between the BRICS member nations.
However, leaders like Brazilian President Luiz Inacio Lula da Silva said that countries that do not use the dollar should not be compelled to trade with each other using the currency. At a summit last year, he explained that a BRICS currency “increases our payment options and reduces our vulnerabilities.”
BRICS could end the dollar’s dominance even without a shared trade currency
Even without a shared trade currency, the bloc could still swing an “economic wrecking ball” at the dollar’s dominance, according to former White House economist Joe Sullivan. He said that although BRICS nations have denied that a rival currency is imminent, the bloc of other emerging market countries that have been invited to join their ranks, such as Iran, Saudi Arabia, United Arab Emirates, Ethiopia, Argentina and Egypt, could pose a big threat to the dollar as their influence grows.
In fact, with Saudi Arabia, Ethiopia, and Egypt – three countries that surround the Suez Canal, a vital passageway for goods flowing into international markets – joining, BRICS would then have an influence over 12% of all global trade. Meanwhile, with Iran, the UAE and Saudi Arabia sitting among the biggest global exporters of fossil fuels and Russia, China and Brazil as major precious metal exporters, the bloc could have significant sway in the commodities markets.
He stated: “The BRICS+ nations do not need to wait until a shared trade currency meets the technical conditions typical of global reserve currency before they swing their newly enlarged economic wrecking ball at the dollar.”
The Chinese yuan is already pushing out other currencies in trade as its trading partners increasingly use it, and this could see the dollar lose its stronghold.
“The BRICS+ states do not even necessarily need to have a shared trade currency to chip away at King Dollar’s domain. If BRICS+ demanded that you pay each member in its own national currency in order to trade with any of them, the dollar’s role in the world economy would go down,” Sullivan added.
With BRICS member states now being more open about moving away from the dollar and trading in national currencies or developing their own currency, it’s time to prepare for the reality that full dedollarization may happen sooner than once believed.
SEE ALSO: CBDCs, BRICS, and De-Dollarization Efforts Accelerate Ahead of a Possible Return of Trump
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]]>That could still happen despite nobody wanting it, but it’s not the most likely outcome. World War 3 is unlikely to be a direct kinetic war between the US, Russia, and China. Instead, the conflict will play out on different levels—proxy wars, economic wars, financial wars, cyber wars, biological wars, deniable sabotage, and information wars.
In that sense, World War 3 is already well underway, even though most don’t recognize it. Below, I’ll look at the seven domains World War 3 is playing out on and analyze which side has an advantage.
Domain #1: Financial Warfare
Financial warfare refers to the use of financial methods as a strategy to achieve military or political objectives.
One common tool of financial warfare is the imposition of sanctions or embargoes. This can involve freezing assets, restricting trade, or limiting access to international financial systems. The goal is to damage the target’s economy, weakening its ability to pursue certain policies or actions.
Imposing controls on the movement of capital and investments can also serve as a weapon in financial warfare. This could involve restricting foreign investments in specific sectors or limiting the ability of foreign investors to withdraw their funds.
Take, for example, the US government’s actions after the Russian invasion of Ukraine in 2022. The US government launched its most aggressive financial warfare campaign ever. Exceeding even Iran and North Korea, Russia is now the most sanctioned nation in the world.
“This is financial nuclear war and the largest sanctions event in history,” a former Treasury Department official said.
He went on to say, “Russia went from being part of the global economy to the single largest target of global sanctions and a financial pariah in less than two weeks.”
Here’s a brief rundown of what has happened. The US and European governments froze Russia’s US dollar and euro reserves—the accumulated savings of the nation—worth around $300 billion.
They kicked Russian banks out of SWIFT, the system for sending international wire transfers. A stampede of Western companies left Russia and banned average Russian citizens from using their platforms. Popular cryptocurrency exchange Coinbase blocked over 25,000 accounts linked to Russia. Visa, MasterCard, and American Express have removed Russia from their networks.
These are just a few examples of how NATO & Friends cut Russia off from the US-dominated global financial system. While BRICS+ countries are trying to build a parallel international financial system, it is not yet ready for prime time. In financial warfare, NATO & Friends have a clear advantage today, though BRICS+ is eroding it.
Result: Advantage NATO & Friends
Domain #2: Economic Warfare
Countries can engage in economic warfare by controlling access to strategic commodities like oil, gas, rare earth elements (REEs), and major trade routes. A country can exert economic pressure on others by limiting access to these resources or influencing their prices.
BRICS+ dominates strategic commodities. Take Russia, for example. Politicians and the media in the US often ridicule Russia as nothing more than “a gas station with nuclear weapons,” an inaccurate cartoonish depiction.
Russia is the world’s largest exporter of natural gas, lumber, wheat, fertilizer, and palladium (a crucial car component). It is the second-largest exporter of oil and aluminum and the third-largest exporter of nickel and coal. Russia is a major producer and processor of uranium for nuclear power plants. Enriched uranium from Russia and its allies provides electricity to 20% of the homes in the US.
Aside from China, Russia produces more gold than any other country, accounting for more than 10% of global production.
These are just a handful of examples. There are many strategic commodities that Russia dominates. In short, Russia is not just an oil and gas powerhouse but a commodity powerhouse. Then there are REEs.
Many are unfamiliar with REEs, a collection of 17 obscure elements on the Periodic Table, despite their indispensable role in modern life. In short, the US military and American consumers depend entirely on these obscure elements.
China controls around 60% of REE production and 95% of REE processing. Beijing also consumes about 67% of the worldwide REE supply.
Nobody can seriously challenge China’s REE monopoly, as it can maintain lower prices longer than any competitor can remain solvent. Then there is Iran, which dominates the Strait of Hormuz, the world’s most crucial energy corridor.
According to the US Energy Information Administration, each day, more than 40% of global oil exports (around 21 million barrels) transit the Strait.
Thanks to its commanding geography and expertise in unconventional and asymmetric warfare, Iran can shut down the Strait, and there’s not much anyone can do about it.
The idea is to level the playing field against a superior enemy with swarms of explosive-laden suicide speedboats, low-flying planes carrying anti-ship missiles, naval mines, and land-based anti-ship ballistic missiles, among other low-cost but highly effective measures.
Analysts believe it would take weeks for the US military to reopen it, but nobody knows if they would succeed. Military strategists have known about this situation for decades. But no one has found a realistic way to neutralize Iran’s power over the Strait. It’s Iran’s geopolitical trump card.
In the Red Sea, Iran’s allies in the Houthi movement in Yemen have recently shut down shipping in this vital economic corridor to all Israeli, American, and British vessels. When you put it all together, BRICS+ has the edge in economic warfare.
Result: Advantage BRICS +
Domain #3: Cyber Warfare
Cyber warfare refers to the use of digital attacks by one nation to disrupt the computer systems of another, often aiming to cause damage, disruption, or fear.
These attacks can target various sectors, including government networks, financial systems, and utility services like electricity and water supply. For example, a successful cyber attack on a power grid could leave millions without electricity or clean water.
Attacking a nation’s financial infrastructure, like banks or stock exchanges, through cyber means is another form of cyber warfare. Such attacks can disrupt economic stability, create uncertainty, and potentially lead to significant financial losses.
The goals of cyber warfare can vary from stealing sensitive information, causing economic damage, disrupting essential services, or creating chaos and panic among the population.
Cyber warfare can be just as damaging as traditional warfare but is often cheaper, less risky, and can be conducted anonymously and remotely. This makes it an attractive option for nations wanting to cause harm while minimizing the risk of direct confrontation.
I expect cyber warfare to be prominent as World War 3 evolves. NATO & Friends and BRICS+ are skilled at cyber warfare. However, I don’t see either side having a decisive advantage.
Result: Uncertain
Domain #4: Information Warfare
Information warfare encompasses a range of tactics aimed at influencing, disrupting, or corrupting the information landscape to affect an adversary’s decision-making process, undermine trust in institutions, or sway public opinion. It aims to influence outcomes both on the battlefield and in public opinion.
This type of warfare leverages the spread of false and misleading narratives, propaganda, and psychological operations to create confusion, sow discord, and manipulate perceptions.
Information warfare can influence elections, shape public opinion on critical issues, and even incite violence or social unrest. The objective is often to destabilize an opponent from within. With the growing reliance on social media and other digital platforms, the role of information warfare is likely to become even more significant in shaping both military and geopolitical landscapes.
The US has enormous influence over the global mainstream media, entertainment industry, and Big Tech platforms. That gives it widespread worldwide reach in a way that Russia and China do not have. As a result, NATO & Friends have the advantage in information warfare.
Result: Advantage NATO & Friends
Domain #5: Deniable Sabotage
Sabotage refers to deliberately damaging, destroying, or hindering vital property.
Deniable sabotage is a hostile action carried out so that the perpetrator cannot be conclusively identified or linked to the attack. The identity of the aggressor remains hidden, or there is plausible deniability.
It means that although there might be suspicions or even circumstantial evidence about who is responsible for an attack, there is no concrete proof. As a result, the alleged perpetrator can credibly deny involvement.
Typical targets for sabotage include infrastructure like bridges and railways, communication systems, supply depots, ammunition stores, and essential utilities like power and water supply systems.
The destruction of Russia’s Nord Stream 2 pipeline and the cutting of undersea fiber optic cables around Norway are likely examples of recent deniable sabotage. NATO & Friends and BRICS+ are skilled at deniable sabotage. However, I don’t see either side having a decisive advantage.
Result: Uncertain
Domain #6: Biological Warfare
Biological warfare is the use of biological toxins or infectious agents such as bacteria, viruses, and fungi to incapacitate or kill humans, animals, or plants. The disease-causing agents can be spread through air, water, or food sources and are often difficult to trace.
The use of biological weapons dates back centuries. In medieval times, besieging armies would catapult diseased corpses over city walls.
Today, the US, China, and Russia have all signed the Biological Weapons Convention, which is supposed to prohibit biological warfare. However, I don’t expect that will prevent biological warfare as World War 3 escalates. The Covid hysteria could have been due to an act of biological warfare.
In any case, the US, Russia, and China all maintain robust and secretive biological weapons programs. However, I don’t see any side having a decisive advantage.
Result: Uncertain
Domain #7: Proxy Warfare
Proxy wars are a method by which major powers fight their battles indirectly, using smaller nations or groups as stand-ins rather than confronting each other directly.
Major powers support, equip, and finance smaller groups or nations in a proxy war to fight against a common adversary. This support can include military training, weapons, funding, and other resources. The critical point is that the major powers do not engage directly in combat.
I expect proxy wars will be a decisive factor in who will win World War 3.
There are numerous ongoing proxy wars. However, there are three that I believe will be key in determining which side has the overall advantage.
Proxy War #1: Ukraine
Ukraine has been the arena of choice for NATO & Friends to confront Russia. As I write this, at the beginning of 2024, the conflict in Ukraine appears to be winding down. Ukraine has suffered serious battlefield setbacks as its much-touted 2023 counteroffensive has utterly failed.
Further weapons shipments from NATO nations are not going to deliver victory to Ukraine. At best, it will only prolong the conflict without changing the ultimate outcome while depleting NATO inventories. US funding is also drying up. American and European voters are growing increasingly tired of the war.
When you put it all together, I suspect we will see serious movement toward a settlement this year that will largely be favorable to Russia.
Result: Advantage BRICS +
Proxy War #2: The Middle East
The Middle East is on the precipice of the biggest regional war in over 50 years. The region is roughly divided into two different geopolitical groups. The first is the US and its allies—Israel, Turkey, Jordan, Egypt, Saudi Arabia, the UAE, Bahrain, and others.
The second group describes itself as the Axis of Resistance. It consists of Iran, Syria, the Houthis in Yemen, Hezbollah in Lebanon, several Palestinian groups, including Hamas, and an assortment of militias in Iraq. Russia and China are standing behind the Axis of Resistance.
In the context of World War 3 and the global geopolitical situation, the US and its allies represent the interests of NATO & Friends, and the Axis of Resistance represents BRICS+. If there is a regional war in the Middle East, it will undoubtedly be between these two groups.
Short of a regional war, there will likely be continued geopolitical competition and low-intensity conflict in the Middle East.
When you take a step back and put it all together, it seems clear that the geopolitical momentum is with the Axis of Resistance in the Middle East.
However, a large regional war could turn things around for the US, Israel, and its allies. NATO & Friends might try a full-scale war with Iran as a last-ditch attempt to scuttle the emergence of a multipolar world order.
It’s also more likely, though, that a full-scale war with Iran and the Axis of Resistance would end in disaster for the US and its allies. That’s probably a big reason it hasn’t happened yet, despite no shortage of hostile intentions. In the meantime, the advantage in the Middle East goes to BRICS+.
Result: Advantage BRICS +
Proxy War #3: Taiwan
China views Taiwan as a breakaway province and has vowed to reunify it with the mainland by force if necessary. Recently, Xi privately warned Biden that China will reunify Taiwan but that the timing has not yet been decided.
While not explicitly committing to Taiwan’s defense, the US has been a significant supplier of military equipment to Taiwan. A Chinese invasion could trigger a response from the US, though the extent and nature of this response are uncertain.
China has one of the world’s largest and increasingly modern militaries. Taiwan has a well-trained military, though smaller and less equipped than China’s.
It seems to me that time is on China’s side. All Beijing has to do is wait; eventually, it will be able to compel Taiwan to reunify peacefully.
In the case of a military conflict, it seems to me China has the advantage. The only way Taiwan would have a prayer is if the US directly joined the conflict. However, the US is unlikely to risk a full-scale war with China because of MAD. When you put it all together, it seems China has the advantage.
Result: Advantage BRICS+
There will likely be other proxy wars as World War 3 progresses, but the ones I believe will prove decisive will be in Ukraine, the Middle East, and Taiwan. The other proxy wars are peripheral in comparison.
All three decisive proxy wars are trending toward a defeat for NATO & Friends. Therefore, the advantage in the overall proxy war domain—which I believe will be the most decisive domain in World War 3—is with BRICS+.
Result: Advantage BRICS+
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]]>I agree. In fact, I don’t think the majority of Americans have a clue what the real consequences of a global war with Russia and its allies would look like. Even if the conflict never resulted in shots fired and stayed confined to the realm of economic warfare, the US and most of Europe would be devastated by the effects.
Carlson specifically mentioned dangers to the status of the US dollar, and I suspect this comment probably mystified a great number of people. Most of the population cannot fathom the idea of a US dollar implosion set in motion by a foreign dump of the greenback as the world reserve currency. They really do believe the dollar is invincible.
The most delusional people are, unfortunately, those within mainstream economic circles. They just can’t seem to grasp that the west is in the midst of financial collapse already, and war would accelerate the effects to levels not seen since the Great Depression.
I have been warning about this outcome for many years. I think I have made my position clear in the past; I suspect the conflict between east and west has been carefully engineered over the course of a decade or more, and Russia is not innocent in this affair.
Russia has consistently collaborated with globalist institutions including the International Monetary Fund in the effort to create a new “global reserve currency system.” In other words, the interests of Russia and the globalists do indeed intersect in a number of ways and the war in Ukraine has not necessarily changed that. Time Magazine even complained last year about the IMF issuing positive reports about Russia’s economy – They thought the organization was going to repeat the false NATO narrative that Russia was in the midst of fiscal implosion. Instead, the IMF essentially praised Russia’s resiliency in the face of sanctions.
As I noted in 2014 in my article ‘False East/West Paradigm Hides Rise Of Global Currency’ in reference to the burgeoning war with Ukraine.
“I would remind pro-Putin cheerleaders that Putin and the Kremlin first pushed for the IMF to take control of the Ukrainian economy, and the IMF is now demanding that Ukraine fight Russia in exchange for financial support. This might seem like irony to more foolhardy observers; but to those who are aware of the false East/West paradigm, it is all the part of a greater plan for consolidation of power.”
I also argued that:
“I have warned for quite some time that the development of East/West tensions would be used as a cover for a collapse of the dollar system. I have warned that among the American media this collapse would be blamed on an Eastern dump of foreign exchange reserves and treasuries, resulting in a global domino-effect ending U.S. world reserve status.”
From the moment Ukrainian President Viktor Yanukovych was deposed (many argue that this was done with the help of western intel agencies) the agenda for WWIII was set in motion. Both sides seemed to create the circumstances by which a conflagration was unavoidable.
Russia, strangely, supported the intervention of the IMF to secure Ukraine’s economy. The IMF then asserted that Ukraine would have to fight Russia to keep control of the Donbas or risk losing the financial aid that was keeping the country alive. Is this irony, or is there something else going on here?
NATO started arming Ukraine, and Ukraine used those arms to slaughter civilians in the Donbas. The eastern population wanted to join with Russia, and Ukraine had no intention of allowing this (IMF funding was on the line). In the meantime, the government began openly discussing the official inclusion of Ukraine into NATO. Russia then invaded, taking the Donbas. Now the entire region is a powder keg and both sides are ready to light the fuse.
But let’s look at this situation as if there was no globalist involvement in facilitating the crisis, just for a moment as an exercise in critical thinking…
If I had to pick a side that is “more right” in their position, it would have to be Russia, but not for the reasons many leftists might imagine when conservatives defend Russia. The bottom line is that the left blindly follows establishment dictates while the rest of us are at least willing to look at the situation from both sides (which is the same thing Tucker Carlson is doing, and he’s being accused of treason for it).
Imagine if China was working to create a military alliance with Mexico with the potential for the Chinese military to stage long range weapons and soldiers on the American southern border? Imagine the chaos that this would cause in the US (maybe they would finally secure the border)? That’s what Russia was facing with Ukraine. Hell, America almost initiated global nuclear war when the Soviets staged missiles in Cuba in 1962. Military operations so close to the borders of major national powers are not a joke.
This was exact rationale for the war on Ukraine cited by Putin in his discussion with Tucker Carlson, and it makes sense. Again, if we look at the events without the prospect of globalist interference. But what if we start to consider who benefits the most from this war?
I certainly don’t trust Putin, but that doesn’t negate the Orwellian behavior of European and American political leaders. There is something going on here beyond the typical mechanisms of geopolitical brinkmanship. The conflict has wide ranging consequences and only serves the goals of a select group of elites. I suspect elements of both Russia and NATO governments are either knowingly or unwittingly serving these interests.
It is undeniable. It is a verifiable reality – Many of our political leaders and elitist institutions are corrupt beyond comprehension. They are seeking an authoritarian reformation, a “great economic reset” and they are triggering multiple conflicts around the world. We saw the mask come off during covid. These people are not merely misguided; they are monsters, and they are hungry. It’s not beyond them to conjure a worldwide calamity and sacrifice the west like a goat on the altar to get the total centralization they desire.
The East/West paradigm plays into this plan perfectly. The BRICS nations are poised to drop the dollar as world reserve; some have already done so in bilateral trade. Make no mistake, if the conflict in Ukraine (and other parts of the world like Syria or Iran) continues to escalate nations like China will move to dump their dollar holdings just as Russia did. As the largest importer/exporter in the world, many countries would follow China’s lead and shift into a basket of currencies instead of the dollar for international trade.
What does this mean?
The dollar, which has been hyperinflated through more than a decade of Federal Reserve QE money printing, has continued to remain stable only because it is the world reserve and the petro-currency. Foreign banks hold trillions in US currency in overseas coffers for this very reason. With the loss of reserve status, an endless river of dollars will then flood back into the US as foreign investors diversify away from the Fed note. Result? Massive inflationary collapse.
This is what’s at stake. This is what Tucker Carlson was referring to, and far too many in America just don’t get it. Globalists benefit because this is what they have been working towards for decades – The deconstruction of US society and the economy so that the “old world order” can be replaced with their “new world order” of Central Bank Digital Currencies. An IMF one-world currency basket and a host of other highly unpleasant socialist changes would swiftly follow.
The BRICS might be working with the IMF because they see the dethroning of the dollar as an opportunity to gain greater influence over international trade. Or, maybe they are controlled opposition and they are scrambling for a seat at the NWO table. In the end, the fall of the dollar would be a watershed moment for the formation of a global currency system.
And the best part for globalists is, they will be seen as the “heroes” when it’s all over. They spent the better part of the last century setting up America for economic failure through their devaluation of the dollar and the creation of a national debt trap. The system was going to break anyway, but now they can divert all blame to war and the “arrogance of nation states” and then come to the rescue with their dystopian digital money.
An east/west conflict opens the door to the Great Reset. It is, in a lot of ways, the core of the Reset. Everything in the new world order agenda relies on it. Right now, the only thing holding back the tide is the public’s general refusal to fight. No one is interested in going overseas to die in a meaningless battle for Ukraine (Zelensky is truly delusional if he thinks Americans will shed blood in his trenches – Even a draft would be an utter failure). No one is interested in starting WWIII, whether it be nuclear or just economic.
I think the establishment’s outrage over Tucker Carlson interviewing Putin is based on their fear that western audiences are already skeptical of the motives behind the conflict and an unfiltered discussion on the war might galvanize this feeling. The notion of war is becoming harder and harder for the establishment to sell.
This, however, does not negate the ability of NATO or Russia in expanding the crisis beyond Ukraine into other regions or into financial subterfuge (again, keep your eyes on Syria and Iran). Ultimately, they want us to choose sides, but only from the list of sides they approve. Liberty minded groups in the west need to choose our OWN side and fight for our own interests. It can’t be about NATO vs Russia, it has to be about free people vs the globalists. This is the only way these disaster events will ever end.
Sound off about this story on the Economic Collapse Substack.
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]]>South African International Relations Minister Naledi Pandor confirmed the full membership of Saudi Arabia, Iran, Egypt, Ethiopia and the United Arab Emirates (UAE) during a Jan. 31 press briefing in the capital Pretoria. The five nations accepted the invitation from the BRICS core group extended during a summit last year. She also told members of the media that Russia, which takes over as the group’s chair from South Africa, has received written interest from 34 countries that want to join.
According to Pandor, Argentina has been accepted as a full member of the BRICS group. However, Argentinian President Javier Milei reversed course and instead strengthened relations with the West. “Argentina has written to indicate that they will not act on this successful application by the previous administration to become full members of BRICS, and we accept their decision,” she said.
The South African minister added that she and her colleagues in the group are developing a so-called BRICS partner country model. This model, Pandor said, would accommodate 17 nations that weren’t accepted as full members.
Moreover, she mentioned that the group is also devising a framework to allow members to use their local currencies for inter-BRICS trade. According to her, the group found the current international payment system that uses the U.S. dollar to be “unfair and costly.”
Ullas Rao, an assistant professor at Heriot-Watt University‘s Edinburgh Business School, noted that the inclusion of Riyadh and Abu Dhabi in BRICS is a “particularly noteworthy” development. With the two oil giants’ substantial sovereign wealth funds, they are poised to create significant growth opportunities in BRICS through investments, trade and commerce.
“The expansion of the BRICS multilateral bloc to include Saudi Arabia and the UAE augurs extremely well, amid ongoing geopolitical and economic challenges confronting the world economy,” he told Economy Middle East.
BRICS grows to 10 members from initial 5 core countries
According to Bloomberg, leaders of the five core BRICS nations – Brazil, Russia, India, China and South Africa – “agreed to enlarge their BRICS group from Jan. 1 at a summit held in Johannesburg in August” of last year. The inclusion of the five new members, which expands the group to 10 nations, took effect on the same day as Russia assumed BRICS’ rotating chairmanship.
Russian President Vladimir Putin welcomed the five new member nations in an official statement. He said: “BRICS is attracting an ever-increasing number of supporters and like-minded countries that share its underlying principles – namely, sovereign equality; respect for the chosen path of development; mutual consideration of interests; openness; consensus; the aspiration to form a multi-polar international order and a fair global financial and trade system; and pursuit of collective solutions to top challenges of our time.” (Related: Saudi Arabia fortifies relations with Russia, thumbing its nose to the West.)
Ayham Kamel, head of the Middle East and North Africa research team for consultancy firm Eurasia Group, commented on the development. He specifically zeroed in on the inclusion of Riyadh, Abu Dhabi, Tehran and Cairo in the BRICS group.
“The prospect of Saudi Arabia, the UAE, Iran and Egypt joining BRICS creates new mechanisms that force a degree of political cooperation by all the countries,” Kamel said. “The Arab countries are looking [to improve] their global geopolitical influence.”
Head over to DeDollarization.news for more stories about BRICS. Watch Gregory Mannarino explains why Saudi Arabia’s BRICS membership poses a direct threat to the petrodollar.
This video is from the High Hopes channel on Brighteon.com.
More related stories:
- Saudi Arabia, UAE and Iran among six countries invited to join emerging BRICS global superpower.
- Dollar dominance scheduled for TERMINATION as Saudi Arabia declares CHINA its “reliable partner.”
- China bank collapse under way; Saudi Arabia distances from the petro dollar to join BRICS monetary order.
- BRICS to lay foundation for EXPANSION: 13 Nations formally asked to join group, 6 others expressed interest.
- End of petrodollar edges closer as Saudi Arabia looks set to join new China-dominated ‘BRICS’ economic alliance.
Sources include:
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