Re: “What Is a Superpower?” — written by George Friedman
This story was originally published in Areas & Producers
Published in
5 min readOct 24, 2024
Summary:
- The BRICS have invited some key members into the multilateral organization, such as Iran and Saudi Arabia. A decisive moment for the future status of BRICS in the international system, Iran’s influence in Middle East politics and economics will be a major boost to this inter-governmental organization’s profile.
- China has the ability to defend itself, but this should not constitute a great power in today’s international system. Due to China’s accomplishments in BRICS, as well as the Shanghai Cooperation Organization (SCO), to bring countries together around multilateral economic cooperation, China is certainly a superpower of sorts.
- We should look deeper at China’s economy during a strategic shift under the leadership of Chairman Xi Jinping. I still believe, as I did when I was a graduate student, that China-Russia relations are critical to the trajectory of China’s rise in the global economy. When China-Russia relations are strong, multilateralism will win over international entities, like BRICS and SCO, of which the member countries in these organizations have been feeling the pressure from the US sanctions.
