Revealing 9 new BRICS partner members, including two Southeast Asian countries

Brazil officially assumed the rotating presidency of the BRICS group of leading emerging economies from January 1.

Brazil officially assumes the BRICS presidency. (Source: Wikipedia)

This year's theme is: "Strengthening cooperation in the Global South for more inclusive and sustainable governance".

Brazilian Deputy Foreign Minister Eduardo Paes Saboia said that during its fourth BRICS presidency, Brazil will focus on three main priorities: climate change, sustainable development and artificial intelligence (AI) governance.

On the agenda, Brasilia will continue to promote previously discussed initiatives, including expanding interbank cooperation and increasing the use of local currencies in trade between member countries.

These efforts aim to enhance the role of BRICS in the international monetary system and promote reform of the global governance system.

Climate issues are of particular concern to Brazil as it will host the 30th Conference of the Parties to the United Nations Framework Convention on Climate Change (COP30) this year. At the same time, AI governance has also been identified as one of the focuses, aiming to establish a unified governance mechanism within the BRICS bloc.

Regarding membership expansion, Brazil affirmed its support for accepting new members and committed to promoting the active participation of partner countries in the bloc's activities.

During the Presidency, nearly 200 events will be held in Brasilia and Rio de Janeiro, including the BRICS Summit scheduled to take place in Rio de Janeiro.

Also from January 1, BRICS officially welcomed 9 new members including Belarus, Bolivia, Indonesia, Kazakhstan, Cuba, Malaysia, Thailand, Uganda and Uzbekistan as partner countries.

Currently, BRICS accounts for 40% of the world's population and 1/4 of global GDP, playing an important role in the world economy.

Source: https://baoquocte.vn/lo-dien-9-thanh-vien-doi-tac-moi-cua-brics-co-hai-nuoc-dong-nam-a-299429.html