The BRICS expansion will have a major impact on the effectiveness of Western sanctions given the bloc's long-term resistance against the measures, prominent US economist and President of the UN Sustainable Development Solutions Network, Jeffrey Sachs, told Sputnik.
"Yes, the Western sanctions are not very powerful when much or most of the world is against them," Sachs said when asked if the BRICS expansion will affect Western sanctions. "The BRICS nations resist the Western sanctions, and that makes a huge difference."
Sachs said he believes the Western sanctions are generally in violation of international law, and imposing them should be according to the approval of the United Nations.
BRICS Expansion to Strengthen OPEC+
The renowned US economist also said that the BRICS expansion will strengthen the Organization of the Petroleum Exporting Countries Plus (OPEC+) and give BRICS nations more leverage in negotiations on the global stage.
"The BRICS expansion will strengthen the BRICS members and give these members more leverage in negotiations in international forums. It will also strengthen OPEC+," Sachs said.
Sachs further noted that the BRICS nations will play a leading role as the world goes through a deep energy transition to zero-carbon energy, including renewables, green hydrogen, and nuclear, among others.
"Mineral investments will be of great significance in the upcoming industrial and energy transformations," Sachs said. "The BRICS nations will play a leading role in the global production and trade in strategic minerals."
Creating Viable Currency Options
The US dollar will eventually be dethroned as the dominant global currency and the BRICS can create viable alternatives, Jeffrey Sachs told Sputnik.
"The BRICS can create viable alternatives to the dollar. In this sense, yes, the dollar will be dethroned as the overwhelmingly dominant global currency," Sachs said. "That is inevitable in the long run in any event, given the declining share of US GDP and global trade."
The BRICS will hasten the transition to a multi-currency system, and the US dollar will still have its role, but a much smaller one among many currencies, Sachs added.
Former chief economist of Goldman Sachs Jim O'Neill told Sputnik the US dollar can be dethroned only when China wants "much wider use" of the Yuan.
The BRICS group of major emerging economies, consisting of Brazil, Russia, India, China, and South Africa, made a significant announcement last week. They revealed that the group's membership will more than double with the inclusion of Argentina, Egypt, Ethiopia, Iran, the United Arab Emirates (UAE), and Saudi Arabia.
The new members are set to officially join the BRICS group on January 1, 2024.
According to the group, this year, the BRICS overtook the global GDP contribution of the G7 group, which includes France, United States, United Kingdom, Germany, Japan, Italy and Canada, and accounts for nearly one-third of world economic activity.