The BRICs can’t save the West

Even if they could settle their disagreements, the BRICs “remain ill-suited to seize the global economic lead,” said Joshua Kurlantzick at Bloomberg Businessweek.

Joshua Kurlantzick

Bloomberg Businessweek

Subscribe to The Week

Escape your echo chamber. Get the facts behind the news, plus analysis from multiple perspectives.

SUBSCRIBE & SAVE
https://cdn.mos.cms.futurecdn.net/flexiimages/jacafc5zvs1692883516.jpg

Sign up for The Week's Free Newsletters

From our morning news briefing to a weekly Good News Newsletter, get the best of The Week delivered directly to your inbox.

From our morning news briefing to a weekly Good News Newsletter, get the best of The Week delivered directly to your inbox.

Sign up

Even if they could settle their disagreements, the BRICs “remain ill-suited to seize the global economic lead.” Leaders have to push for common solutions, yet these countries oppose any action that “smacks of meddling in another country’s business.” What’s more, the BRICs are not becoming more open, innovative, or competitive. If their now-booming economies run into trouble, all their energy will go to “righting their own ships, leaving them little capacity to look beyond their borders.”

The BRICs may yet provide some short-term relief to struggling eurozone countries. But if the world looks to them to “provide long-term leadership,” it will be waiting a long time.