The BRICS summit to be held in South Africa will be of "huge importance" for Argentina due to its chance to join the bloc's Development Bank, as well as the growing significance of the group in the global economy and geopolitics, international analyst Jorge Castro, told Sputnik.
Castro stressed that BRICS today is not just an "alternative bloc" since it includes several countries that have contributed most to the growth of the world economy in recent years.
"For the world, and primarily for developing countries, what is happening with BRICS is much more important and relevant than what is happening with the G7," the analyst noted.
Castro emphasized the economic potential of the bloc with the BRICS bank, which Argentina may join at the August meeting in South Africa. The analyst also stressed the importance of this financial organization that already holds more than $100 billion in funds, which "gives it truly extraordinary lending opportunities."
According to the expert, the growth of the BRICS bank "already reflects a fundamental trend in the development of the global system: the world economy is shifting towards developing countries, and primarily Asian nations."
Although he argued that the BRICS bank is not an alternative to the IMF or to international organizations in general, Castro said that the bank is "an expression of the structural change that the world system has undergone."
In this regard, Castro was skeptical of the intentions of Argentine presidential candidate Javier Milei, who assured that he would freeze relations with China and Brazil for ideological reasons if elected, despite the fact that they are two of Argentina's main trading partners.
The analyst believes that if Milei becomes president these positions could change under the force of events as happened with former Brazilian President Jair Bolsonaro (2018-2023).
Castro remarked that "there is no international policy that does not take into account realities" and Brazil and China are currently "two fundamental countries in terms of going international" in both trade and investment.
"This is the structural data of Argentina's entry into the world, and therefore whoever comes to political power in Argentina or in any other Latin American country must adapt to the realities of the world system, which give China an absolutely decisive role for all the countries of the region, that is, South America," the expert explained.
Castro insisted that at present "it is impossible to change this orientation of the world."
Argentina's presidential election is scheduled for October 22. The main contenders for the presidency are Sergio Massa, the incumbent economy minister running for the ruling Union for the Homeland party, and opposition politicians including former security minister Patricia Bullrich, Buenos Aires Mayor Horacio Larreta and far-right libertarian economist Milei.
In the primary votes, Milei garnered over 30% of the vote.
Milei has suggested some radical changes to the country's problems. For instance, to solve Argentina's economic problems, he wants to abolish the country's central bank and replace the national currency with the US dollar.