Dossier

The first BRIC summit (as the group was called before South Africa joined it) was held in Yekaterinburg on June 16, 2009. The discussion of problems associated with the global financial crisis came to the fore. As a result, a statement was adopted in which the countries spoke in favor of “promoting the reform of international financial institutions” and the creation of a “predictable and diversified monetary system.” A document was also adopted outlining a number of measures to solve the problem of food security.

The second summit took place on April 15-16, 2010 in Brasilia. In a joint statement, the leaders of the BRIC countries noted the role of the G20 in combating the crisis, supported the Russian Federation’s application to join the WTO, and agreed to jointly resolve the problems of terrorism, nuclear safety and others. Russian VEB, the China Development Bank, the National Bank for Social and Economic Development of Brazil and the Export-Import Bank of India signed a memorandum of cooperation - the first practical document within the group.

At the third summit, held on April 13-14, 2011 in Sanya (China), South Africa was officially included in the organization. The traditional final declaration was supplemented by an action plan, including a number of ministerial and expert meetings, joint research, and the publication of statistical collections. The five state banks signed a framework agreement providing for the mutual provision of credit lines in national currencies.

The fourth summit in New Delhi on March 28-29, 2012 ended with the signing of a general agreement on the provision of loans in national currencies and a multilateral agreement on the confirmation of letters of credit. The creation of a common BRICS development bank was also discussed, and the finance ministers of the member countries were instructed to present a report on the viability of this idea at the next summit.

Olga Shkurenko

Results of the BRICS summits