The 2025 U.N. General Assembly (UNGA) will likely be dominated by the drama over European states unilaterally declaring Palestinian independence, but it will also be an important week for the BRICS economic collective, which has positioned itself as an alternative to the post-World War II international order led by the United States and Europe.

BRICS is named after its first five members: Brazil, Russia, India, China, and South Africa, which joined after the group’s founding in 2009.

The name BRIC was coined in 2001 by a Goldman Sachs economist who saw the four original members coalescing into a mega-economy that could challenge the power of the Western world. Russian President Vladimir Putin thought that sounded like a great idea and hosted the first official summit in 2009. China

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