Russian President Vladimir Putin stated on Friday that the BRICS group has already exceeded the G7 in economic scale and will widen the gap in future years. At the St Petersburg International Economic Forum, moderated by India Today, he noted this reflects a gradual move of growth toward the Global South.
His comments on BRICS arrive as US President Donald Trump has criticized the group, which includes Brazil, Russia, India, China and South Africa, with Egypt, Ethiopia, Indonesia, Iran and the UAE joining later. Trump previously labeled BRICS a risk to the US dollar and proposed 100 percent tariffs on the bloc.
Putin highlighted that growth is moving toward emerging centers in the Global South and that BRICS nations are becoming key drivers. He noted BRICS accounted for 49 percent of global GDP growth over the past five years, compared with 18 percent for the G7, and forecast stronger expansion for BRICS than for advanced economies.
