Six new countries including Saudi Arabia have been invited to join the Brics bloc of developing nations, South Africa has announced, after three days of closed-door discussions between members.
Argentina, Egypt, Ethiopia, Iran, Saudi Arabia and the United Arab Emirates have been invited to become full members of Brics, summit host Cyril Ramaphosa announced on Thursday.
The membership of the new members will come into effect from 1 January 2024, Mr Ramaphosa said.
The debate over expanding the bloc – which currently comprises of Brazil, Russia, India, China and South Africa – was the key item on the agenda of the three-day summit in Johannesburg that culminated with the announcement.
The UAE’s president Mohamed Bin Zayed welcomed the announcement, saying the country is looking forward to joining the bloc.
“We respect the vision of the BRICS leadership and appreciate the inclusion of the UAE as a member to this important group. We look forward to a continued commitment of cooperation for the prosperity, dignity and benefit of all nations and people around the world,” he said on X.
Chinese president Xi Jinping called it a “historic” moment that will write a new chapter for developing countries to work together with unity.
Mr Xi, Brazilian president Luiz Inácio Lula da Silva, Indian prime minister Narendra Modi and host country South Africa’s president Ramaphosa held meetings throughout the summit at the conference centre in Johannesburg’s Sandton financial district.
Russian president Vladimir Putin, who attended the forum on Tuesday via video link, did not attend the summit after he was issued an International Criminal Court arrest warrant. Foreign minister Sergei Lavrov took part in discussions and meetings to represent him.
The Brics leaders welcomed the move and issued statements after Mr Ramaphosa’s announcement.
“Expansion and modernisation of Brics is an indication that institutions of the world must get accustomed to changing times,” Mr Modi said.
Mr Lula da Silva said: “We will remain open to new candidates”. He added that Brics “offers a source of creative solutions for the challenges that we face”.
In a video message, Mr Putin said: “The adoption of the guiding principles in the expansion of Brics will ensure that the role and importance of Brics in the world will continue to grow.”
The expansion of the bloc has long been called for by China to counter Western multilateral forums at a time when geopolitical polarisation is spurring in the world.
The move is being framed as a way to amplify the voice of developing nations, but some members have previously shown hesitation amid fears a shift in makeup could help Brics serve the geopolitical interests of Beijing and Moscow.
An Indian government source told The Independent that “significant development[s]” on the issue of expansion came during the first day of the summit on Tuesday, when the leaders present had a “retreat” including dinner together.
“India took the lead in forging consensus on membership criteria and selection of new members,” the source said, adding that India’s objective in the talks was “to incorporate our strategic partners as new members”. Among the six countries invited, the UAE are one of India’s closest allies.
The other concrete policy that the bloc raised in South Africa is a broad plan to pivot from using the US dollar for trade between Brics nations and instead trade in local currencies.
South Africa had said that more than 40 countries have expressed interest in joining Brics and 22 have formally requested to be admitted.
