Trump tries to dismantle Brics again, opening another front with India

The TOI correspondent from Washington: US President Donald Trump took another wild swipe at the 20-nation Brics organisation, which India will chair in 2026, claiming “everyone is dropping out” of the formation after he warned that their exports to America would be tariffed if they challenged the US dollar’s status as a global reserve currency.The MAGA supremo returned to a familiar peeve at a bilateral meeting with Argentina leader Javier Milei on Tuesday, alleging that "Brics was an attack on the dollar," and he had told potential members that if they "want to play that game,” he would tariff their products coming to the US. “I told anybody who wants to be in Brics, that's fine, but we're going to put tariffs on your nation. Everybody dropped out. They're all dropping out of Brics," he claimed. No country has dropped out of Brics, which now has 20 countries – including 10 associate members – from the founding four (Brazil, Russia, India, and China) in 2009, with South Africa joining a year later. Egypt, Iran, Ethiopia, and UAE joined as full members in 2024 and Indonesia in 2025, bringing the full members strength to 10.Also read: Trump slams 'little group called BRICS'; claims it seeks to end US currency dominanceAfter Brics introduced a new category called "Partner Countries" at its 2024 summit to integrate prospective members, 10 other countries have been officially designated as Brics Partner Countries as of January 1, 2025: Belarus; Bolivia; Cuba; Kazakhstan; Malaysia; Nigeria; Thailand; Uganda; Uzbekistan and Vietnam.

Saudi Arabia is the only country that has demurred so far. Invited to join effective January 1, 2024, it has not yet formally confirmed its full membership and is still reportedly considering the matter. Both Pakistan and Bangladesh have applied to be members and their applications are said to be under consideration with support from China and Russia, and reservations from India. Argentina, under the government of former President Alberto Fernández, formally submitted an application for Brics membership in 2022, but following his election in late 2023, the current President Javier Milei, a Trump pal and a self-declared self-declared anarcho-capitalist who favors closer ties and alignment with the United States, sent a letter to Brics leaders formally declined the invitation. Among other putdowns, Milei disdained dealing with “communist countries” such as China, and said Argentina was unwilling to be burdened by the political agendas of other member nations – although that has not prevented him from selling soybeans to China while begging the US for a bailout at the same time even as American farmers are sitting on their massive soy surplus. With his country on the brink of economic disaster, Mileu is in Washington this week to receive a $ 20 billion handout and pledge fealty to Trump, who has warned the lolly won’t be forthcoming if Argentinians don’t vote for his surrogate in the upcoming election. Trump’s effort to dismantle Brics puts New Delhi at odds with him on one more front, with India set to assume the Brics presidency on January 1, 2026. India’s agenda for the organisation during its presidency includes a “People-Centric and Humanity-First Approach,’ prioritizing the concerns and interests of developing nations front and center with issues such as global health and climate justice, terms that are anathema to MAGA’s America First outlook.