- Devčić says that BRICS is not a counterweight to the EU and the US, but rather a platform for cooperation among countries with different interests and increasingly pronounced divisions.
- He points out that, as an EU candidate country, Serbia must align its foreign policy with the Union, as balancing between different sides has consequences for the accession negotiations.
- He argues that EU membership would strengthen Serbia’s institutions, foreign-policy capacity and sovereignty.
As the international order is changing rapidly and the influence of new centres of power is growing, the issue of Serbia’s foreign-policy direction is becoming increasingly complex. In recent years, BRICS has expanded its membership and ambitions, while the European Union remains the strategic framework for Serbia’s European path.
Between these two contexts, Belgrade is seeking to maintain relations with different partners while preserving room for independent action.
Does BRICS truly represent an alternative centre of power to the West, or is it primarily a platform for cooperation among countries with different interests? What does its growing influence mean for the existing international order, and where are the limits of Serbia’s foreign-policy balancing? These were among the questions discussed at a roundtable organised by the Konrad Adenauer Foundation on the occasion of the study "Serbia and BRICS."
Jakov Devčić, Director of the Foundation for Serbia and Montenegro, spoke to EUpravo zato about these and other important issues.
Speaking about why the Konrad Adenauer Foundation considered it important to address this topic at this particular time, Devčić explained that the immediate reason was a series of important international summits held in September — the Shanghai Cooperation Organisation Summit in Bishkek, the Non-Aligned Movement Summit in Belgrade, and the BRICS Summit in New Delhi.
According to him, these events sent a signal that diplomatic activities among countries that are members of these organisations or have observer status were intensifying, which led to the assessment that it was the right time to launch a series of discussions on BRICS in Serbia.
However, as he pointed out, these were only the immediate triggers, while the deeper reason was the growing public interest in BRICS in Serbia, as well as, as he said it, a certain mystification of this group among the domestic public.
"We wanted to better understand for ourselves what BRICS is, what it means for Serbia, and to compare Serbia’s relations with BRICS countries with Serbia’s relations with the EU. In short, we wanted to demystify BRICS. That is why we also supported the study on BRICS, which is currently undergoing proofreading, and we expect the study to be published in November."
Devčić added that, throughout its decades of work in political education and strengthening democratic political culture, the Konrad Adenauer Foundation has consistently engaged in analytical and strategic thinking about international and social processes.
"We seek to open important topics before they become part of the mainstream public debate. In this context, our study on BRICS and the discussion we organised should be viewed primarily as a contribution to an informed, objective and fact-based public debate in Serbia. Debates about geostrategic orientations should be based on facts, rather than perceptions or myths. We expect the study to be published in November."
BRICS as a Platform for Cooperation, Not a New Bloc
Speaking about how BRICS should be understood today, given its significant expansion in recent years, Devčić said that the grouping should primarily be viewed as a platform for developing bilateral relations among its member states, rather than as an international institution in the full sense of the term.
At the same time, he pointed to major contradictions among the key member states, which is why he does not expect the BRICS integration process to accelerate in the near future.
"BRICS should be viewed as a platform for developing bilateral relations among its member states. It is not an international institution in the true sense of the term, although there are ambitions among the founding countries for it to become one. The contradictions among the key BRICS countries are significant, and I do not expect the BRICS integration process to accelerate in the near future."
The Most Important Message the BRICS Summit in New Delhi Sent to Europe
"The most important message is the explicit support of BRICS countries for fundamental reform of the UN and the UN Security Council," Devčić explains, highlighting this as the key message of the New Delhi Declaration.
"It calls for reform of the international order. There are disagreements over other issues, while, in my view, the messages from the summit are too general. The bilateral disputes between India and China are a particularly significant problem. India is a member of the Quad, together with the US, Japan and Australia, and uses its developed relations with these countries to balance pressure from China. BRICS is therefore not an internally coherent organisation, as it was several years ago. Disputes among its members are multiplying."
Serbia’s Foreign Policy between Diversification and European Integration
Asked about the boundary between foreign-policy diversification and moves that could call Serbia’s strategic orientation into question, Devčić first pointed out that Serbia is an independent and sovereign country that independently defines its foreign policy.
At the same time, as a candidate country for EU membership, Serbia is in the process of progressively aligning itself with the Union’s Common Foreign and Security Policy, which forms an integral part of the accession negotiations under Chapter 31.
"Because of Serbia’s failure to align with European foreign policy, a group of countries that believe Serbia’s further progress in the negotiations should be conditioned on greater foreign-policy alignment, in terms of shared values, is becoming increasingly influential. The most vocal advocates of such an approach are primarily the Scandinavian and Baltic countries. As key decisions on EU enlargement are made by consensus, their position may have a significant impact on the pace of Serbia’s accession process."
BRICS and the Changing Global Balance of Power
Asked whether the strengthening of BRICS primarily reflects the appeal of new centres of power or indicates that existing international institutions no longer correspond to changing global circumstances, Devčić said that the growing influence of the grouping primarily reflects the strengthening of the economic and political influence of its members, particularly China. As he explained, China is seeking greater influence over the shaping and reform of the international order, while similar ambitions, to a lesser extent, exist among other BRICS members as well.
"The world is becoming multipolar, and divisions between the poles are becoming increasingly pronounced. In this sense, BRICS is not a unified political and geopolitical bloc that would act as a counterweight to the EU and the US. It is already facing the differing interests of its own members. Divisions within BRICS are becoming increasingly pronounced."
Strengthening Institutions as the Basis for Foreign-Policy Action
As for how Serbia can remain open to different partners while at the same time maintaining a clearly defined strategic direction, Devčić believes that these two objectives are not mutually exclusive.
According to him, the key to such a policy lies in strong institutions, a developed economy and broader social consensus, as these are what enable a confident and predictable foreign policy. He identifies the further strengthening of the country’s domestic capacities as an important issue, noting that these capacities determine the quality and credibility of its international engagement.
"In this regard, the European Union has also been a key partner for Serbia over the past decades in modernising institutions, carrying out economic reforms and moving closer to European standards that contribute to Serbia’s strategic importance. We are deeply convinced that, upon joining the European Union, Serbia would strengthen its foreign policy. As a member of the most attractive political club in the world, Serbia would gain additional potential for foreign-policy action. In this regard, it should be clear to the Serbian public that, by moving closer to and joining the EU, Serbia would gain in sovereignty, a concept that is very important to Serbian society."
(EUpravo zato.rs)