BRICS: Trump’s pushback meets a fragmented bloc

In a revealing overview, Deutsche Welle captures the renewed clash between Washington and the rapidly expanding BRICS alliance—now 10 members strong—as President Donald Trump threatens punitive tariffs against countries supporting the bloc’s “anti-American policies.” The warning, delivered during the 2025 BRICS summit in Rio, signals a new phase in the global contest over economic influence and currency power.

Trump’s move to impose an additional 10% tariff on BRICS-friendly nations is a clear response to the bloc’s efforts to erode the dominance of the U.S. dollar. While the threat is smaller than his earlier pledge of 100% tariffs for “dollar manipulation,” it reflects growing U.S. concern over the BRICS’ dedollarisation ambitions—particularly trade in rubles, yuan, and other non-dollar currencies.

As DW notes, this pressure comes just as BRICS is enjoying record momentum. Once a group of five, it now includes Indonesia, Iran, Egypt, Ethiopia, and the UAE, with dozens more lining up. On paper, the bloc represents a quarter of global GDP and nearly half the world’s population. Yet the article underscores a crucial caveat: size does not equal unity.

Despite shared frustrations with Western dominance, BRICS is riddled with internal tensions. India resists any China-dominated common currency, while Brazil prefers local trade mechanisms over a new monetary unit. Even with expanded ranks, intra-BRICS trade accounts for only 3% of global trade, underlining the bloc’s modest cohesion and limited reach.

Analysts like Alicia Garcia-Herrero suggest that while BRICS may present a powerful anti-Western image, internal frictions limit its effectiveness. The failure to launch initiatives like BRICS Pay or a unified currency shows how ideological and geopolitical differences—especially between India and China—undermine real progress.

Still, Trump’s tariff salvo has real consequences. DW points out that for poorer BRICS members such as Ethiopia and Egypt, the potential cost of U.S. economic retaliation could outweigh the benefits of bloc membership. This raises doubts about how sustainable BRICS expansion will be when faced with external pressure from the world’s largest economy.

Yet BRICS is clearly not backing down. In their joint summit declaration, member states denounced unilateral sanctions and trade protectionism—coded language for opposing Trump’s tactics. They also called for reform of global governance institutions, voiced support for Palestinian statehood, and condemned Western military actions without naming the U.S. or Israel.

Beyond economic cooperation, the bloc is pushing into political domains like artificial intelligence governance, climate cooperation, and global health—a sign that it aspires to be more than just a counterweight to the G7. However, as DW stresses, this ambition is constrained by a lack of clear institutional direction and durable strategic unity.

In short, Deutsche Welle paints a nuanced picture: BRICS is expanding and evolving, but not yet coalescing. Trump’s economic pressure may test the bloc’s resolve, but internal contradictions pose a more enduring obstacle. The contest over global order is heating up—but the outcome remains uncertain.

By Vugar Khalilov