Why BRICS Was Expanded?

BRICS was established mostly to solidify international representation, greater economic and geopolitical integration, and to balance Western-allied blocs like the G7 and the World Bank. Egypt, Iran, the UAE, Saudi Arabia, and Ethiopia were invited as strategic inclusions according to their economic standing, energy resources, and continental presence.

Reasons for BRICS Expansion

1. Economic and Political Diversification: As it expands, BRICS seeks to enhance economic interdependencies, lower reliance on Western financial institutions, and deepen geopolitical alignments in key regions such as the Middle East and Africa.
2. Energy Security: With the addition of Saudi Arabia, UAE, and Iran, BRICS now has a tighter hold on international oil and gas markets, with fewer Western-controlled energy trade mechanisms to rely on.
3. Empowering the Global South: The addition of African and Middle Eastern countries reinforces the position of BRICS as the voice of the developing world, providing a counterbalance to Western-led global institutions.
4. Countering Western Sanctions & Dollar Hegemony: The addition of new BRICS members assists in diminishing dependence on the US dollar in international trade, promoting alternative financial structures.
5. Strategic Defence and Military Cooperation: The defence sector of all these countries is strong, and therefore BRICS is an even stronger global defence cooperation player.

Why These Countries Were Selected?

• The United Arab Emirates and Saudi Arabia were selected due to their immense economic clout, sophisticated defence industries, and critical oil reserves. They also provide BRICS with increased exposure to the Middle East, a region of supreme importance to international commerce and security.
• Iran’s membership provides BRICS with a strong geopolitical counterbalance to the sanctions system of the West. It also brings in precious experience in drone warfare, missile technology, and naval defence and thereby solidifies military cooperation.
• Egypt, the military powerhouse of Africa and a great Suez Canal operator, maximizes naval protection and safeguards global trade routes from Asia to Europe and Africa as a member of BRICS.
• Ethiopia is one of the rising economies in Africa, and its geostrategic location in the Horn of Africa gives BRICS unparallelled dominance over the strategic trade routes of the Red Sea.

India’s Military Alliances Prior to BRICS Expansion

Before the BRICS expansion, India’s defence cooperation in the organization was focused on three nations: Russia, Brazil, and South Africa. All these were bilateral, with no role of the BRICS organization in defence cooperation. However, these alliances laid a solid foundation for future defence cooperation within the newly expanded BRICS framework.

Russia: India’s Most Valuable Defence Ally

Russia has been India’s traditional main arms supplier historically, and almost 50% of Indian defence imports come from Russia. India-Russia defence relations have been marked by defence production cooperation in the form of joint ventures, technology transfer, and co-production of defence systems.

• The most conspicuous of these joint ventures is the BrahMos Aerospace, which is a joint venture of India’s Defence Research and Development Organisation and Russia’s NPO Mashinostroyenia. They have jointly developed the BrahMos supersonic cruise missile, which is now in India’s arsenal.

• India has been depending highly on Russian technology to produce cutting-edge military hardware locally, including the Sukhoi Su-30MKI fighter, T-90 tanks, and Akula-class nuclear submarines. These collaborative ventures under licensed production have played an important role in consolidating India’s indigenous defence industry.
• The INDRA series of India-Russia joint military exercises involve all the three armed forces’ services- the Army, Navy, and Air Force. The exercises help in improving coordination of operations and combat preparedness.
• Weapon Procurement: India has acquired various Russian-origin defence systems, including the S-400 air defence system, MiG-29 fighter aircraft, and stealth frigates. These purchases have significantly enhanced India’s strategic deterrence capability.

China: A Multi-Dimensional Tie Within BRICS

Despite continued border tensions, India and China have held formal military talks in BRICS and the SCO.

• Multilateral Defence Dialogues: India and China have held strategic discussions at the BRICS and SCO levels that encompassed counterterrorism, cyber security, and the myriad of threats to regional security.
• Joint Military Exercises: Both countries have participated in the SCO’s “Peace Mission” counterterrorism exercises, which focus on joint operations to counter insurgency and asymmetric threats. While these exercises improve military diplomacy, the current tensions at the Line of Actual Control (LAC) overshadow bilateral military cooperation.

Brazil and South Africa: Emerging Defence Partnerships

India has also inked the defence cooperation pacts with Brazil and South Africa, specifically on naval defence and space technology.

• India has collaborated with Brazil in aerospace cooperation, specifically between Brazil’s Embraer and India’s Hindustan Aeronautics Limited (HAL). The countries have also worked together on defence R&D initiatives, such as the manufacture of surveillance planes.
• In its defence, one might note that India’s bilateral relationship with South Africa has largely thrived within the IBSA framework, an alliance that prioritizes trilateral understanding among India, Brazil, and South Africa as its primary agenda. Central to this alliance is naval cooperation, as seen through the IBSAMAR trilateral naval exercises, designed primarily to enhance Indian Ocean Region maritime security.
• Defence Technology Transfer: South Africa, which boasts advanced defence production facilities, has supplied India with major defence items, including radar and missile technology.

Even with these interactions, BRICS had not been a major platform for military cooperation prior to its enlargement. India had mostly relied on bilateral arrangements and regional groups like QUAD and SCO to inform its strategic alignments.

Impact of BRICS Enlargement on Indian Defence Partnerships

The inclusion of Egypt, Iran, UAE, Saudi Arabia, and Ethiopia in BRICS in 2023 has offered more military cooperation possibilities to India. The enlargement will redefine defence alliances in a number of ways:

1.Encouraging Defence Industry Cooperation

• Iran: Iran is an important strategic ally, and with Iran being a member of BRICS, naval and security coordination increases. India already uses the Chabahar Port as an important transit point for commerce and military supply chain management. Since Iran is a member of BRICS, the scope of increased naval collaboration in the Indian Ocean and combined research in missile defence systems increases.

• UAE & Saudi Arabia: The Gulf nations are heavily investing in military technology and cyber security. Their membership in BRICS opens the window of opportunity for collaborative ventures with India in the areas of drone technology, cyber warfare, and missile defence. Joint production and technology transfer are now more inevitable.
• Egypt, being Africa’s strongest military, presents a good chance for India to establish its defence exports by virtue of its membership in BRICS. The grouping presents a chance for collaboration in fighter aircraft technology, naval systems, and defence training programs.

2. A broader range of cooperative military exercises

• India has also conducted bilateral military exercises with Saudi Arabia and UAE. Their entry into BRICS now also creates the possibility of multilateral exercises, further regional defence coordination.
• The BRICS enlargement enables counterterrorism cooperation, deepens intelligence sharing, and strengthens the security of vital maritime routes, especially in the Persian Gulf, the Red Sea, and the Indian Ocean.

3. Reduced Western Defence Suppliers Dependence

• The extended membership of BRICS gives India a second procurement line of defence, thus reducing its dependency on Western countries such as the US and France.
• India can venture into indigenous development and technology transfer with Russia, Iran, and China and get raw materials supplied from African and Gulf countries.
• As most defence transactions have been sanctioned by the United States and Europe, BRICS is also capable of providing an alternative military transaction platform uncontrolled by the West.

4. Problems of Alliance Balancing

• The China Factor: Navigating a Multifaceted Relationship
  • China’s membership in BRICS is a double-edged situation for India. While economic cooperation among BRICS is strong, the traditional military rivalry between the two countries is a serious issue.
  • The recurring tensions over the Line of Actual Control (LAC) in regions like Ladakh and Arunachal Pradesh have led to armed clashes, most prominently the confrontation in the Galwan Valley in 2020. These encounters put a dark shadow on the possibility of increased defence cooperation between BRICS.
  • The strategic competition in the Indo-Pacific has become more pronounced with India’s increased participation in the QUAD bloc with the United States, Japan, and Australia as a riposte to China’s increasing assertive actions in the region. China, in response, has intensified its bilateral relationship with Pakistan, thus intensifying India’s security dilemma.
  • Economic vs. Military Cooperation – While China is India’s biggest trading partner, the current geopolitical competition is preventing any serious military cooperation. India’s plan is to utilize BRICS for economic benefits and limit security cooperation with China.

• US and Western Concerns: Balancing the Pressures of Diplomacy
  • India’s increasing engagement with the BRICS nations, particularly defence, has created concern among its Western allies, particularly the United States and the European nations.
  • India’s Defence Relations with Russia and Iran: The United States has sanctioned nations that have significant defence deals with Russia, as mandated by the CAATSA (Countering America’s Adversaries Through Sanctions Act). India’s purchase of the S-400 missile defence system from Russia has already put a strain on its diplomatic relations with the US. Similarly, Iran remains under US sanctions, limiting India’s autonomy to act in defence and military technology transfer. Iran’s membership in BRICS, however, may offer India a clandestine channel for naval cooperation and military logistics.
  • It is a fine balancing act between Indo-Pacific and BRICS obligations. The US Indo-Pacific Strategy is meant to contain the growing power of China by strengthening ties between India and countries like Australia and Japan. But India’s growing military cooperation with BRICS countries like Russia and Iran can upset these allies. To walk this tightrope carefully, India needs to diversify its defence engagements carefully so that it does not upset the BRICS countries as well as its Western allies.
  • Technology Transfer and Strategic Autonomy: The US and European countries have been slow in transferring cutting-edge high-tech military technology to India due to fears that enhanced BRICS interactions, especially with Russia and China, would undermine security interests.
  • India seeks to develop an Atmanirbhar Bharat (self-reliant defence ecosystem) while still employing Western technology transfers and collaborative production arrangements.

• Navigating the Middle Ground
  • To successfully balance these challenges, India must:
    • Leverage BRICS for defence trade and indigenous technology acquisition without compromising strategic autonomy.
    • Keep QUAD and Indo-Pacific nations engaged without excessive dependence on BRICS or the West.
    • In order to enhance domestic defence production and reduce reliance on Russian and Western providers.

Benefits for Other BRICS Countries

The growth of BRICS significantly increases defence trade and military coordination among its member states, hence giving each of its member states strategic benefits.

• Russia, now under a broadened BRICS umbrella, is finding that it is accessing a broader defence market, particularly in India, Iran, and Egypt. With Western sanctions continuing, BRICS provides a safe outlet for Russian arms sales, including fighter aircraft, missile defence systems, and naval equipment.
• China’s embracing of UAE and Saudi Arabia into its fold further consolidates its geopolitical presence in the Gulf, which has long been a Western-friendly region. China possesses the strength to widen its partnership with these countries in defence technology and arms sales, hence widening its military presence in the world.
• Iran is also benefiting from new defence alliances that allow it to bypass Western sanctions. Membership in BRICS would further increase its ability to conduct joint military exercises, share intelligence, and transfer technology with countries like Russia and China, thus strengthening its military power.
• Both Saudi Arabia and the UAE are modernizing their military actively. As members of BRICS, they can tap into India and China’s advanced military technology, such as missile defence, artificial intelligence warfare, and drone technology. Furthermore, increased engagement with BRICS members allows them to diversify their security relations beyond the traditional Western connections.
• Egypt and Ethiopia, as the key countries of the African theatre, are thus afforded the chance to develop their defence industries, purchase advanced weaponry, and sign military training cooperation agreements with BRICS countries. The new shift affords them the chance to establish security blocs outside of Western spheres, thus becoming regional powers.

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Conclusion

The BRICS expansion has radically reshaped India’s defence alliances, creating new channels of defence cooperation, bilateral defence exercises, and diversification of arms trade. It has also assisted India in enhancing its strategic autonomy by reducing reliance on Western suppliers. Challenges persist, mostly balancing China’s growing influence and walking the line with the US. In the future, India needs to leverage the BRICS platform to expand its defence exports, enable greater sharing of military technology, and promote regional security cooperation while safeguarding its national interests.