BRICS no rival to G7 and G20, Brazil’s Lula says as bloc meets

Brazilian President Luiz Inacio Lula da Silva said on Tuesday that the BRICS bloc of nations aims to organise the developing Global South and is not meant to rival the United States and the Group of Seven wealthy economies. According to Reuters, his comments point to a divergence of vision as leaders of the bloc – Brazil, Russia, India, China and South Africa – arrived in Johannesburg for a summit that will weigh expanding the group as some members push to forge it into a counterweight to the West.