Fashion Roundtable, a UK advocacy group, endorsed the Russia-organized Moscow BRICS Fashion Summit in an article echoing Vladimir Putin’s rhetoric, but later deleted it and apologized after UK Friends of Ukraine, a B4Ukraine member, raised concerns.
Moscow hopes to build up BRICS — which now includes Egypt, Ethiopia, Iran and the United Arab Emirates as well as Brazil, Russia, India, China and South Africa — as an opposition to the West in geopolitics and trade.
The article portrayed BRICS countries as growing at an annual rate of 6.5%, “unlike Europe, where many are suffering from the cost of living crisis.”
“With Turkiye and Egypt joining the bloc, textile manufacturing decidedly resides within the group, making the West firmly dependent on their decisions, despite the portrayal of the UN fashion alliance and the G7 Fashion Pact as visionaries ‘leading the way,’” the piece authored by Jackie Andrews-Udall said.
According to the author, the summit included a welcome from a Russian government minister and state-linked institutions such as the Russian Fashion Fund, and laid the foundation for the BRICS International Fashion Federation and Moscow will be “at the centre of a diverse creative platform.”
“The Russian vision […] pragmatically guides us toward a future where sustainable practices urgently need improvement,” stated the coverage.
Fashion Roundtable has issued an apology, deleted the article, describing it as an error, and promised to produce a new article about Ukrainian Fashion.
“We wholeheartedly condemn the actions of the Russian Government and their unlawful invasion of Ukraine. We have in the past called other atrocities and injustices and we have, and will continue to, actively promote Ukraine Fashion and talent,” Fashion Roundtable said.
Fashion Roundtable has sought to distance itself from Jackie Andrews-Udall’s article while acknowledging the group’s intention to “focus on the BRICS event as a whole.”
Andrews-Udall, who describes herself as a pacifist and ecological activist, said in a LinkedIn post about the issue, “Neither of us attended with the perspective of supporting Russia’s war machine.”
Many UK and global businesses, including some of the largest fashion brands, have exited the Russian market in recognition of their human rights obligations and commitment to ethical business practices. However, numerous companies remain committed to staying in the aggressor state despite the risks. A recent investigation by the Daily Mail uncovered that the products of British brands such as Barbour, Burberry, Mothercare and Agent Provocateur are still being sold in Russia.
Since Moscow launched its full-scale invasion of Ukraine more than two and a half years ago, the world has witnessed severe violations of international humanitarian law, including war crimes and crimes against humanity. These include deliberate attacks on civilians and civilian infrastructure, mass executions, sexual violence, torture, and the forcible transfer of civilians.
To date, more than 30,000 Ukrainian civilians have been killed or injured, and millions have been displaced from their homes, creating one of the largest humanitarian crises in modern history. The International Criminal Court issued an arrest warrant for Vladimir Putin in March 2023 for war crimes. The number of war crimes committed by Russia in Ukraine has now surpassed 148,000.