BRICS, the new name for world peace.

The BRICS Summit held in Rio de Janeiro marked a watershed moment in the construction of a new international order based on cooperation, multilateralism, and peace among peoples. Faced with a global scenario dominated by wars, sanctions, and instability, the BRICS countries reaffirmed their historical vocation: to promote sustainable development, defend the sovereignty of states, and offer concrete alternatives to the imperial logic that still governs international relations. Today, BRICS is the political name for world peace.

At the summit's opening session, President Luiz Inácio Lula da Silva summarized the bloc's new role by stating: "Its representativeness and diversity make it a force capable of promoting peace and preventing and mediating conflicts." Composed of 11 full members and ten partner countries, BRICS today represents 48,5% of the world's population, 39% of global GDP (in purchasing power parity), and more than 70% of known reserves of strategic minerals. 

Overcoming imperialism and colonialism, which for centuries served as the basis for the political, economic, and military domination of the nations of the Global South by the Global North, is an indispensable step towards building a multipolar, just, and democratic world. And that is exactly what BRICS is doing. By condemning unilateral sanctions, which disregard international law, and by advocating for the urgent reform of the UN Security Council, the group is positioning itself as a protagonist of change.

In Lula's speech, his criticism of the current UN structure, dominated by an exclusionary veto system, was evident: "Delaying this process makes the world more unstable and dangerous." He also reminded the audience that "it is easier to allocate 5% of GDP to military spending than to allocate the promised 0,7% for development assistance," demonstrating that the scarcity of peace in the world is not a result of a lack of resources, but of a lack of political will on the part of the dominant powers, which impose themselves through force and ideological domination.

Another decisive point of the summit was the explicit rejection of the militarization of space and the arms race. In its Final Declaration, BRICS advocated for the creation of a multilateral legal instrument to guarantee the sustainability of space activities and prevent the military use of space. Furthermore, it expressed concern about the growing risks of nuclear conflict, advocating for the resumption of arms control and diplomacy as a path to lasting peace.

However, it is not enough to talk about peace: it is necessary to build the material conditions that sustain it. In this sense, the strengthening of the New Development Bank (NDB) was one of the great milestones of the summit. Led by its president Dilma Rousseff, the NDB has expanded its alliances and consolidated its role as a strategic agent for financing sustainable development. The admission of Colombia and Uzbekistan as new members reinforces the bank's ambition to offer a real alternative to the Western-dominated financial system.

With its own funding, autonomous guidelines, and a focus on infrastructure development, green transition, and combating inequality, the NDB presents itself as a concrete answer to the systemic exclusion of developing nations. It not only complements but challenges the monopoly of institutions such as the IMF and the World Bank.

The BRICS also made progress in key areas such as cooperation in global health, artificial intelligence governance, trade with local currencies, and the climate finance agenda, consolidating itself as a strategic space for policy formulation and the articulation of shared interests.

At the close of the summit in Rio, President Lula made it clear: BRICS is the direct heir to the spirit of Bandung and the Non-Aligned Movement. It is the institutional instrument of the Global South's struggle for sovereignty, equality, and peace. Overcoming imperialism—be it military, political, or financial—is essential so that the 21st century does not repeat the horrors of the last century.

Today, BRICS is a concrete alternative for all who yearn for a just international order anchored in respect among peoples and dialogue between civilizations. The bloc represents the hope that the world will no longer be governed by the logic of force, but by the force of reason and solidarity. History has already begun to turn. And BRICS wrote a beautiful chapter in Rio de Janeiro.