Fostering High-Quality BRICS Partnership

Lu Jing

Upon the backdrop of drastic changes and the pandemic unseen in a century， the world is facing various security challenges， lackluster global economic growth， rising risks of geopolitical conflicts and extraordinarily severe and complex international situations. As a group of emerging market economies with global influence， the BRICS has been a positive， stable and constructive force in international affairs. Upholding the BRICS spirit featuring mutual respect and understanding， equality， solidarity， openness， inclusiveness and consensus， the BRICS has established and cemented the partnership which becomes a shining example of cooperation among major countries in the new era. Faced with new requirements and tasks presented by the changing international landscape， the BRICS actively fosters high-quality partnership to concretely add stability and positively contribute to the international relations undergoing volatility and transformation.

FEATURES OF HIGH-QUALITY BRICS PARTNERSHIP

Since the Russia-Ukraine conflict broke out in early 2022， the international situation has been worsening and volatile and world peace， stability and cooperation have been under threat. In such a situation， only by strengthening solidarity and fostering high-quality partnership can the BRICS effectively address the challenges brought about by the drastic changes. The high-quality BRICS partnership essentially lies in high-quality development and high-level security.

High-quality development is fundamental. Development has been the mission and objective of the BRICS cooperation; promoting common development has been the underpinning principle of the BRICS partnership. However， faced with the dual impacts of the COVID-19 pandemic and the Russia-Ukraine conflict， the lackluster world economy is suffering from more and more uncertain factors. The Chief Economists Outlook released by the World Economic Forum in May 2022 suggested that the world this year would witness less economic activities， higher inflation， lower real wages， exacerbating food insecurity and risks of tipping the global economy into recession. Under such circumstances， boosting high-quality development has become the priority for the BRICS and the essence of high-quality partnership. The BRICS should connect global industrial chains and supply chains， support the implementation of the 2030 Agenda for Sustainable Development， foster the global development partnership featuring solidarity， equity， balance and universal benefits and facilitate a more robust， green and healthy global development.

High-level security is the key. Since security is the prerequisite and guarantee of development， it is necessary to address both development and security. The Russian-Ukraine conflict not only exacerbates geopolitical conflicts and major-power rivalry but also acutely challenges international security and stability by posing such non-traditional security threats as fluctuations in the global financial market， food crisis， energy crisis and refugees. Jointly addressing the complex and volatile international security environment through closer security cooperation is the best option for the BRICS. The profound adjustments in state-to-state relations against the backdrop of drastic changes offer more options for ambitious BRICS that aspires to become major powers and pursues strategic independence， while enhancing solidarity and cooperation and protecting and expanding the rights and interests of developing countries and emerging market economies at large also remain the due responsibility of the BRICS. Therefore， while pursuing strategic independence， the BRICS should bear in mind the bigger picture of cooperation， reinforce strategic communication and coordination， deepen security cooperation at various levels and in various fields， embark on the road of new-type security and build a global community of security.

The high-quality partnership is essentially comprehensive， close， pragmatic and inclusive. The partnership is “comprehensive” in the sectors and dimensions of cooperation. While consolidating the three-pillar-driven cooperation in the areas of political security， economy and people-to-people exchanges， the BRICS continuously expands sectors of cooperation and adds new dimensions. The partnership is “close” in the BRICS relations and interactions. The BRICS cements the BRICS strategic partnership to strengthen communication and coordination on major international and regional issues and enhance strategic mutual trust. The partnership is “pragmatic” in the outcome-oriented approach. The BRICS should act on the outcomes and consensus of previous summits to achieve concrete cooperation results. The partnership is “inclusive” in the “BRICS+” cooperation platform. The BRICS intensifies the cooperation with other emerging market economies and developing countries at more levels， in more sectors and larger scope for common development and prosperity.

PATHWAY TO HIGH-QUALITY BRICS PARTNERSHIP

Building a high-quality BRICS partnership rises to the drastic global changes as a natural choice. To this end， the BRICS should champion an up-to-date vision， put in place effective mechanisms and move toward concrete actions.

I. Championing up-to-date vision

An up-to-date vision normally has three features. The first is keeping up with the times. Such a vision stays ahead of the times and guides the trend of the times. The second is practicality. Such a vision adopts an up-to-date approach to effectively address challenges in the real world. The third is justice. Such a vision represents the interests and voices of the majority in the society and gathers the most extensive social recognition. In the over decade-long cooperation course， the BRICS has followed the spirit of openness， inclusiveness and win-win cooperation and upheld the guiding principles of treating others as equals， seeking common ground while putting differences aside， pursuing pragmatic outcomes and innovation， striving for win-win cooperation， keeping a global perspective， helping others after becoming well-off. These up-to-date visions featuring keeping up with the times， practicality and justice guide the BRICS to open up new prospects.

Amid new global circumstances featuring turbulence and division， the BRICS needs to proactively advocate and stay committed to the vision of a community with a shared future for mankind in the process of fostering high-quality partnership. Specifically， the BRICS should remain committed to multilateralism， safeguard the international system with the United Nations at its core and uphold the international order underpinned by international law; implement the development philosophy featuring open， inclusive， green and innovative development and jointly build an open and innovative world economy; follow the vision of common， comprehensive， cooperative and sustainable security to accommodate each others core interests and major security concerns by replacing confrontation with dialogue， replacing coercion with consultation， replacing alignment with partnership and replacing zero-sum rivalry with win-win cooperation; uphold the global governance principle of extensive consultation， joint contribution and shared benefits to ensure that joint participation in major international issues， joint formulation of international rules and sharing of development outcomes.

II. Putting in place effective mechanisms

Since the start of the BRICS cooperation mechanism in 2009， a multi-level， multi-field and multi-channel cooperation network has been formed， which is guided by the BRICS summits and participated by governments， business communities and all sectors of society. Such a mechanism makes the BRICS cooperation more resilient. Amid the new drastic changes， more effective cooperation mechanisms will better escort the development of high-quality BRICS partnership.

An effective cooperation mechanism should not only lead to collective actions and generate actual benefits， but also have the power of execution and self-regulation. The BRICS constantly presses ahead with innovation to make the cooperation mechanisms more effective. In 2021， the BRICS Sherpas adopted the revised Terms of Reference for guiding BRICS engagement going forward on its working methods， the scope of engagement and the Chairs mandate， making the cooperation go smoothly with higher efficiency. In the meantime， the BRICS keeps up with the times to upgrade and improve its mechanism and achieves tangible results through the launch of a host of cooperation entities and platforms， such as the BRICS PartNIR Innovation Center， the BRICS Vaccine R&D Center， the BRICS Agricultural Research Platform， the BRICS Platform on Digital Public Goods， and BRICS alliance for Green Tourism.

III. Moving toward concrete actions

Action orientation has been a salient feature of the BRICS partnership. In the new situation， the BRICS should take more concrete actions through further innovation.

In the economic and trade field， China， as the BRICS Chair of 2022， hosted a series of “Buy BRICS” online promotion events in Xiamen. Through real-time interaction with BRICS diplomats， introduction by internet influencers， short videos and multi-platform promotion， the BRICS aims to establish a cross-border e-commerce import base to increase the export from other BRICS countries to China. In the fiscal and financial field， the New Development Bank （NDB） is an important outcome of pragmatic cooperation and a major platform for BRICS financial cooperation. The year 2021 witnessed the handover of the permanent headquarters of the NDB in Pudong New Area of Shanghai and the successful first round of expansion of members. With the four new members of Bangladesh， the United Arab Emirates， Uruguay and Egypt， the NDB is equipped with more advantages in increasing capital and talent reserves， reducing loan concentration， improving credit rating and expanding international influence.

In addition， the BRICS has strengthened pragmatic cooperation in such prioritized areas as poverty reduction， food security， pandemic response and vaccines， development financing， climate change and green development， industrialization， digital economy and interconnectivity to jointly contribute to world economic recovery through win-win cooperation.

FOSTERING HIGH-QUALITY BRICS PARTNERSHIP

Fostering the BRICS Partnership on New Industrial Revolution is a strategic choice of the BRICS to deepen cooperation in such sectors as digitalization and industrialization， maximally grasp the opportunities and tackle the challenges brought about by the Fourth Industrial Revolution. It is also an important part of the high-quality BRICS partnership.

In recent years， under the impacts of populism and the anti-globalization tide in the western world， the COVID-19 pandemic and the Russia-Ukraine conflict， the political and economic conditions for international cooperation have further worsened and the global supply chain has become extremely fragile. The world is also witnessing the rapid development of such digital industries as internet， big data， cloud computing， artificial intelligence and blockchain. The industrial digitalization is unfolding in full swing in more industrial fields and a larger market scale and deeper levels. In such a situation， the BRICS adjusts to the age of digital economy by seizing the opportunities offered by the digital economy to speed up the building of industrial powers and promote economic growth and transformation. This is also a natural choice for the BRICS on their journey towards high-quality development.

During the BRICS Johannesburg Summit in 2018， China joined hands with South Africa to propose the establishment of the BRICS Partnership on New Industrial Revolution， which was also included in the 10th BRICS Summit Johannesburg Declaration. In his speech delivered at the 11th BRICS Summit in 2019， President Xi Jinping stated that the five countries should deepen the BRICS Partnership on New Industrial Revolution. In 2020， the 12th BRICS Summit Moscow Declaration pointed out that the BRICS welcomes further advancement of trade and investment cooperation， including within the framework of the BRICS Partnership on New Industrial Revolution. In the same year， China kicked off the establishment of the BRICS PartNIR Innovation Center in Xiamen， serving as a pilot base for BRICS innovation cooperation. The BRICS PartNIR Innovation Center brings into full play the comparative advantages of the BRICS countries， strengthens policy coordination and cooperation in personnel training and project R&D， accelerates the industrialization of BRICS countries， pushes forward common development， and contributes to the improvement of the global economic governance system. In the 13th BRICS Summit New Delhi Declaration released in 2021， the BRICS reaffirms the cooperation towards the establishment of the Center for Industrial Competences， welcome the initiative of a BRICS PartNIR Innovation Center in China and BRICS PartNIR Startup events from India.

As the BRICS Chair of 2022， China actively advances the BRICS Partnership on New Industrial Revolution. On the platforms of BRICS PartNIR Innovation Center in Xiamen and the BRICS Center for Industrial Competences， China hosted the BRICS Forum on Development of Industrial Internet and Digital Manufacturing， the BRICS Forum on Big Data for Sustainable Development and BRICS Industrial Innovation Contest. China also launched BPIC training program， endorsed the BRICS Digital Economy Partnership Framework and released the BRICS Initiative for Cooperation on Digitalization of Manufacturing to jointly promote innovation cooperation in digital transformation. China also works together with other BRICS countries to safeguard multilateral and bilateral cooperation mechanisms， promote free trade and investment liberalization and facilitation， strengthen cooperation on industrial chains and supply chains， accelerate the cooperation in the digital transformation of manufacturing， and increase cooperation in green and low-carbon industries. China has also issued the Beijing Initiative of Global Trade and Investment Promotion Summit， proposing to jointly tackle the challenges of the pandemic， facilitate the stability and recovery of the world economy， bridge the development gap together， actively foster innovation， and encourage sustainable development.

CONCLUSION

The BRICS countries， as emerging market economies and major developing countries with considerable international influence， serve as powerful engines of world economic growth and important builders and defenders of international order and the global governance system. As the world today is undergoing dramatic turbulence and changes， the BRICS should jointly foster a comprehensive， close， pragmatic and inclusive high-quality partnership and embark on a new journey of BRICS cooperation. High-quality BRICS partnership not only contributes to the world economic recovery and growth， peace and stability but also pushes the international order and international governance system to move towards fairness， equity， justice and balance.

Lu Jing is Professor at the Institute of International Relations， China Foreign Affairs University