“ At the BRICS summit in Kazan (Russia), there will be new members. In total, about 25 countries have indicated that they are ready to join the bloc ,” Maqetuka said.
The South African ambassador to Russia said that new members are expected to be admitted to the bloc at the summit in Kazan. However, he stressed the importance of clarifying the process by which a country can join BRICS.
“ To become a BRICS member, there are two processes. First, a country can express its intention to join the bloc. Second, a country can directly apply to join the bloc. Currently, 25 countries are waiting to join, and by the 15th summit, six of these 25 countries will be nominated. Right now, I think only 12 countries will be considered. So, there are still about 11 countries waiting ,” Mr. Maqetuka emphasized.
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| Photo: RIA Novosti |
Ambassador Maqetuka further informed that by the summit in Kazan next October, the list of candidates will be clearer and BRICS will expand. He said there will be announcements about new members, especially from countries that have already applied to join the bloc. These include Algeria, Belarus, Pakistan, and many others.
“ BRICS will expand in Kazan, but there is no way for all 11 remaining countries to be approved as members of the bloc; this process must happen gradually ,” Maqetuka noted.
In a related development, Saudi Arabia has yet to decide whether or not to join BRICS. According to Ambassador Maqetuka, this is because Riyadh is still undergoing certain processes to join the group.
“Saudi Arabia is still going through its own processes. One, as a country. Two, together with its BRICS partners. Saudi Arabia has not yet confirmed it. We will see that when we get to this year’s Summit in Kazan,” Ambassador Maqetuka explained.
Previously, at the 15th BRICS Summit last August in South Africa, six new countries were invited to join the group. However, Argentina was the first country to decline BRICS membership because newly elected President Javier Milei expressed skepticism about the bloc. Only the United Arab Emirates (UAE), Iran, Egypt, and Ethiopia have become members of the bloc since January 2024.
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