ASEAN Countries Seek BRICS Membership
• Dr. Devender Kumar
Among nearly 40 countries that have shown interest in the BRICS, four are ASEAN member states. Thailand, Malaysia, Laos, and Vietnam are keen to join the grouping. In May 2024 the Thai Cabinet officially “approved the plan to join BRICS” and in June 2024 Foreign Ministry of Thailand officially confirmed this and said we have “submitted a formal request to join BRICS”. It became the first ASEAN member state to apply for the grouping.
Similarly, on 29 July 2024, Malaysia applied for membership and formally became the second ASEAN member to apply for BRICS. At the “Eastern Economic Forum” (EEF) meeting in Russia, Malaysian Prime Minister Anwar Ibrahim stated that “Malaysia is seeking to join BRICS for strengthening cooperation with its member countries and promoting fair global trade”. Malaysia sees the membership as an opportunity to enhance its “trade” and “prevent financial monopolies”. Also, Laos People's Democratic Republic (PDR) and Vietnam attended the “BRICS Dialogue with Developing Countries” on 11 June 2024 in Russia.
The Minister of Lao highlighted his country's interest in BRICS and said “Laos is interested in joining BRICS and will work on the requirements to attain the membership”. The Minister of Planning and Development stated “because of positive developments in BRICS” his country wishes to join the BRICS grouping. The Prime Minister and Foreign Affairs Minister of Laos attended the “BRICS Dialogue with Developing Countries” in Russia and shared countries interest in “strengthening the framework of BRICS partnership” in areas such as ‘energy and mining’, ‘politics and security’, ‘culture and tourism’, ‘railway and transport’ and ‘information and security’. Both sides also discussed ‘ASEAN-Russia cooperation’ during this meeting.
On 9 May 2024, Vietnam hinted at BRICS membership and the foreign ministry announced that “Vietnam is committed to engage and contribute positively to global and regional multilateral forums”. The country had already attended the 15th BRICS summit in South Africa last year and in June 2024 it signed a “cooperation agreement with TV BRICS International Media Network” to receive the latest information related to the “developments in BRICS”. The Deputy Minister of Foreign Affairs attended the “BRICS Dialogue with Developing Countries” in Russia. In his speech, he highlighted “three key” issues for the focus of developing economies; (a) trust for peaceful resolution of conflicts with multilateral cooperation with the central role of UN; (b) “improving the role of developing countries in governance”; (c) capacity, resilience and adaptability of emerging economies in addressing global challenges.
There are at least four reasons why ASEAN countries wish to join the BRICS. First, BRICS is an opportunity for the ASEAN countries to integrate with multilateral institutions. The ASEAN countries have acknowledged that the world is changing and the importance of multilateralism is increasing and BRICS lays strong emphasis on multilateralism, and economic, political, and cultural integration. It has welcomed 5 new countries at the beginning of 2024. Therefore, ASEAN countries are looking outside of the grouping for multilateral cooperation to create self-reliance. While the GDP of ASEAN is $3.6 trillion and the combined GDP of BRICS is $25.85 trillion- the grouping can provide good economic opportunities. BRICS is increasing its ‘foreign investment’ and economic engagement. It has created two multilateral institutions i.e. New Development Bank (NDB) and the Contingent Reserve Arrangement (CRA) that help fund development and infrastructure projects. Through NDB, BRICS aims to give $5 billion in loans and ASEAN states can avail loans for development. And in case of a balance of payment crisis, the CRA can be utilized for ‘financial safety’.
Second, ASEAN countries have identified several areas of cooperation with BRICS and attended the ‘BRICS Dialogue of Developing Economies’ in Russia. Nearly 22 ministers from different countries attended this dialogue and identified areas of cooperation such as food security, energy security, trade, technology sharing, investment, cross-border digital transactions, supply-chain connectivity, and promotion of local currencies.
Third, ASEAN member Malaysia is unhappy with the US position on the Israel-Hamas conflict. It has strong anti-US sentiments domestically. Malaysians appreciated the efforts of South Africa and China to resolve the ongoing Gaza War and welcomed South Africa’s Genocide Case against Israel. ASEAN states are in favour of a fair and just global order. The anti-US sentiments are so strong in Malaysia that the Malaysian PM has not visited the US despite assuming office in 2022. He visited China twice and in his book, The Asian Renaissance he talked about inclusive global order.
Fourth, ASEAN countries want to enhance cooperation with China and India. PM of Malaysia visited India in August 2024 to have a “multi-sectoral cooperation” on defense and security. China is already their biggest trading partner. ASEAN states see the partnership with BRICS as a win-win- as it would provide access to Indian and Chinese markets and benefit them by providing new partners for semiconductors, cybersecurity, and tourism.
ASEAN states are looking to BRICS to establish cooperation, enhance political and economic profile, and economic integration with emerging economies of the Global South. Moreover, seeking BRICS membership will not harm the centrality of ASEAN as it highlights their collective strength.
Dr. Devender Kumar is Assistant Professor at the Center of Excellence for Geopolitics and International Studies (CEGIS), REVA University.
