BRICS: strategies of persuasion

This dissertation explores the strategic communications of the BRICS (Brazil, Russia, India, China and South Africa) intergovernmental platform. BRICS is a recent addition to the growing array of international organisations. Though BRICS consists of significant emerging and re-emerging states, it remains poorly perceived and obscure. Previous analyses that have examined BRICS as an aggregation of its member states or distinguished it simply as a slogan designed by Goldman Sachs have failed to discern it for the rhetorical, strategic entity that it is. This dissertation focuses on BRICS’ essence and intent, its strategic communications. It analyses BRICS’ narrative and scenario, examining its rhetorical appeals, its strategies and tactics of persuasion. The study employs a critical rhetorical analysis to explore publically available primary documentation emanating from high-level BRICS meetings. Three analytical chapters assess this corpus, conceptually distinguished as programmatic (Memoranda of Understanding, agreements and treaties), organic (summit Declarations) and opportunistic (Statements) documents. This analysis expediently takes from disciplines and schools of thought to qualitatively and inductively assess strategic style and agency. It applies theoretical and conceptual tools to examine claims that emerge from the texts. BRICS’ documents present organisational strategy and articulate its appeals. These are rhetorically explored to discern BRICS, per se. BRICS’ rhetoric motions towards its aims. Its strategic means, ways and ends are closely assessed. The dissertation finds that BRICS is an informal intergovernmental regime towards engendering reform inside of the normative international order. Its claims indirectly shape global governance according to its interests. BRICS is a process-driven advocacy mechanism that brings states together as nodes in a state-centric intergovernmental style. It rhetorically steers towards its aspired outcomes without taking considerable action. It does so to avoid responsibility. It rhetorically performs the principles and norms of the legitimate international order under the United Nations, in order to substantiate its form of multilateralism; to actualise reform while maintaining structure. By employing its principles and norms, BRICS embodies and therefore territorialises the multilateral order. BRICS’ strategic communications develop an alternative narrative towards steering international cooperation and exchange. Its articulation of the international order confronts dictated hegemonic conceptions, asserting that no unilateral interpretation holds an absolute truth. Sovereign states are not circumscribed by other states but only by legitimate international law and order. In doing so BRICS pursues international recognition for its member states, disrupts what it perceives to be hegemonic inertia and redefines global governance. BRICS illustrates a significant modality to assess the contemporary international order and the recent developments in global power. Its indirect form, a procedural and fluid platform for extra-Western sovereign states to pursue influence and execute wills, proposes the evolution of international power in the 21st century. BRICS actively employs a hybrid (both-and) strategy to lead toward a reformed global order based on a greater balance of powers (multipolarity). The development of BRICS and BRICS Plus presents compelling cases for further, critical studies.

Grantor

Department of Private Law

Year dc:date.issued

2018

Author dc:creator

• Kotze, Klaus

Advisor dc:contributor.advisor

• Salazar, Philippe-Joseph

Handle dc:identifier.uri

http://hdl.handle.net/11427/30014

OAI identifier oai:identifier

oai:open.uct.ac.za:11427/30014