India’s Foreign Minister, S. Jaishankar, recently gave a fascinating explanation of why the BRICS group—comprised of Brazil, Russia, India, China, and South Africa—is unlike any other international alliance. Speaking at the Geneva Centre for Security Policy, Jaishankar compared BRICS to other well-known trade groups like the European Union and NAFTA, pointing out that BRICS doesn’t follow the usual rules or patterns of regional cooperation.

In his remarks, Jaishankar explained that BRICS...