This chapter assesses the extent to which there is strategic cooperation among the BRICS+ in diplomatic forums and on selected security issues. What unites the countries in this study is first and foremost their status as ‘emerging economies', their strong economic growth, and their desire to be heard in the debate on international economic and financial governance. At the same time it seems clear that this is a grouping of very different countries in terms of level of development, geopolitical aspirations, economic structure, future challenges, and future prospects. As mentioned in the introduction, the question is whether their new-found wealth also forms the basis of closer diplomatic ties. More importantly, does this translate into a more assertive stance on geopolitical issues and a drive towards a mutual coordination of policies in this area? In other words, is there a kind of ‘BRICS+ pact’ on issues of global governance and security?

To test whether this is the case, the following chapter demonstrates the results of an analysis into four different elements of diplomatic interaction: first, an assessment is made of the extent of formal diplomatic ties between the BRICS+ countries and the rest of the world (5.1). The second part of this chapter focuses on the decision-making behavior of the BRICS+ countries within the UNSC (section 5.2). Paragraph 5.3 discusses the degree to which common positions are taken during Non-Proliferation Treaty (NPT) Review Conferences and, finally, paragraph 5.4 analyzes the extent of BRICS+ coordination during Conference of the Parties (COP) Summits in the context of the United Nations Framework Convention on Climate Change (UNFCCC).

DIPLOMATIC CONNECTIONS

Trade relations are important, but just one factor connecting two countries. Diplomatic links are another crucial consideration. Diplomatic relationships are top-down and centralized in a way that makes them very different from trade (or other economic) connections, which are – at least in theory – an aggregate outcome of decisions made by many independent actors and as such are much more bottom-up.

There is no single indicator that can be used to judge the closeness of the diplomatic relationship between two countries. Many are possible and some can be only assessed in a qualitative way, for example the extent to which two countries share common ground with respect to the most important international issues.