Three Obstacles to Iraq’s Accession to BRICS, BY MNT GOAT 3 NOV

 Three Obstacles to Iraq’s Accession to BRICS

Al-Saadi told Baghdad Today, “Iraq has not joined the BRICS group yet for several reasons related to the current economic and political situation, in addition to the fact that Iraq does not meet the conditions for joining, the most prominent of which is that it be among the major economies in the region. However, Iraq’s economy is primarily rentier and depends solely on oil exports as a primary source of income, which makes its economy less diversified compared to the group’s founding countries such as China and India.”

He added: “The second important question is that Iraq should have absolute financial sovereignty over its economy, and not as it is now, where it is subject to the rules and conditions of the US Federal Reserve in granting financial shares .”

(Mnt Goat: This last statement is VERY important and shows us once again who is holding up Iraq and the RV)

“Iraq’s trade relations with some BRICS members, such as Brazil and South Africa, are not strong enough to support it in this direction. In addition, Iraqi foreign policy is still balanced between competing global powers, including the United States, which is cautiously looking at BRICS expansion and its geopolitical influence,” he said, noting that “ in the future, these dynamics may change, especially if economic diversification is enhanced, internal political stability is achieved, and absolute financial sovereignty is achieved.”

He noted that “if Iraq joins, it may benefit from expanding opportunities for economic cooperation with countries such as China and Russia, including investments in infrastructure and non-oil sectors, which may help reduce dependence on oil and diversify sources of income .”

The professor of international economics concluded his statement by pointing out that “there are some potential harms to Iraq joining BRICS and entering a bloc that challenges Western hegemony, especially the United States, which may lead to diplomatic or economic tensions with the West,  which negatively affects Iraq’s current trade and political relations with Western countries. Also, dealing with some of the founding countries of BRICS, such as Russia, which faces international sanctions, may put Iraq in sensitive positions on the international scene.” BRICS is a group of nine countries: Saudi Arabia, Russia, China, South Africa, India, Brazil, the UAE, Iran and Egypt.

The number of members of the bloc, which focuses on economics before politics, has increased and seeks to break Western “hegemony” over the international system, but many factors make this a long and thorny path, according to experts.

Russia, the group’s founding state and embroiled in a brutal war with Ukraine, is hosting more than 20 leaders at the annual summit, setting an ambitious agenda, most notably “dedollarization” and alternative financial mechanisms.