Emerging relations between emerging markets

We’ve all heard a lot about China’s involvement in Africa and in Latin America, as it creates relationships with governments and promises business and development aid in exchange for access to natural resources.

This has been interesting because traditionally conversations around development and aid have flowed through the West and never between two “emerging markets”.

Now we see another example of emerging markets countries trying to address a global problem. With the Iran nuclear crisis continuing unabated, Brazil is stepping in to try to mediate.

I’m not going to comment on the Iran crisis itself other than to say it is worrying, but seeing Brazil step in could be a positive development.

As a general trend, the West could view greater engagement between emerging markets as a threat to it’s hegemony, or it could embrace greater global involvement with a view that it takes multiple perspectives to solve some of the world’s most pressing problems.

There is also some plain facts that necessitate greater global involvement. The first is, unfortunately, the West is broke and has lost significant credibility. This isn’t comeuppance, this is a serious issue that needs to be addressed. Emerging markets, having gone through multiple credit meltdowns of their own, have largely sat this one out and have come out stronger financially as a result. Brazil is notable in this regard.

And now Brazil is trying to take this new found confidence and reign in Iran. We’ll have to see how successful it is in acting as an interlocutor between Iran and the West, but I’m rooting for Lula