Brazil, Russia, India, China, and South Africa, or BRICS, are an economic and political bloc formed in 2009. Since its formation, it has welcomed additional members, including Egypt, Ethiopia, Indonesia, Iran, and the UAE. Their names, however, do not easily create a clever acronym. So instead, the collective informally goes by “BRICS+.”
BRICS+ countries make up a substantial portion of the global economy, and their influence should not be underestimated. BRICS’ Environmental Working Group recently convened its 12th Environment Ministers’ Meeting in India. The big takeaways were published in a Joint Statement. Of note, BRICS+ appears to disapprove of the EU’s Carbon Border Adjustment Mechanism (CBAM):
“We oppose unilateral, punitive, discriminatory and protectionist measures that are not in line with international law, such as carbon border adjustment mechanisms (CBAM), and express concern that such measures undermine efforts by countries, specifically the developing countries aimed at addressing the adverse impacts of climate change, increasing adaptive capacity and resilience.”
The bloc also rejects madatory climate reporting. Many label BRICS+ as “climate critical.” Coincidentally, 5 of the world’s top ten oil exporting countries are BRICS+ members. Normally, I wouldn’t bother blogging on an economic bloc’s fluff report that “promotes sustainability” while standing against any concrete action to address climate change. That’s pretty par for the course in global sustainability. However, the resistance to CBAM and reporting requirements makes this Joint Statement interesting.
The U.S. is already putting significant pressure on the EU regarding the extraterritorial portions of its sustainability laws. So far, the EU has held firm, but pressure is increasing. There is a legitimate question of whether the EU can resist simultaneous pressure from BRICS+ and the U.S. Right now, the EU needs allies, other countries and economic blocs that are willing to impose similar sustainability regulations in their economies. Otherwise, the mounting pressure may prove too much.
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