This handout photograph, taken and released by the Russian Foreign Ministry on August 22, 2023, shows (L-R) Brazil’s President Luiz Inacio Lula da Silva, China’s President Xi Jinping, South Africa’s President Cyril Ramaphosa, India’s Prime Minister Narendra Modi and Russias Foreign Minister Sergei Lavrov pose for a group photo during the BRICS Business Forum in Johannesburg. (Photo by Handout / RUSSIAN FOREIGN MINISTRY / AFP) / RESTRICTED TO EDITORIAL USE – MANDATORY CREDIT “AFP PHOTO / RUSSIAN FOREIGN MINISTRY” – NO MARKETING NO ADVERTISING CAMPAIGNS – DISTRIBUTED AS A SERVICE TO CLIENTS – RESTRICTED TO EDITORIAL USE – MANDATORY CREDIT “AFP PHOTO / RUSSIAN FOREIGN MINISTRY” – NO MARKETING NO ADVERTISING CAMPAIGNS – DISTRIBUTED AS A SERVICE TO CLIENTS /
By Biodun Busari
The five BRICS nations – Brazil, Russia, India, China, and South Africa – have announced they would extend their membership strength by admitting six new countries next year.
BRICS stated they would give admission to Argentina, Egypt, Ethiopia, Iran, Saudi Arabia, and the United Arab Emirates from January 1, 2024, the Guardian UK reported.
They disclosed this during the summit which began on Tuesday in Johannesburg, South Africa, stating that the effort is become the club of large and populous emerging economies seeking to reshape the global order.
Speaking on the expansion of the membership, the Chinese President, Xi Jinping, said it would kick-start a new vigour and further strengthen BRICS cooperation.
“This membership expansion is historic,” Xi said. “The expansion is also a new starting point for BRICS cooperation. It will bring new vigour to the BRICS cooperation mechanism and further strengthen the force for world peace and development.”
The Ethiopian prime minister, Abiy Ahmed, praised what he called “a great moment” for his country. “Ethiopia stands ready to cooperate with all for an inclusive and prosperous global order,” he said on X, formerly known as Twitter.
According to the Guardian UK, calls to enlarge BRICS had dominated the agenda at its three-day summit in South Africa and exposed divisions among the bloc over the pace and criteria for admitting new members.
But the group, which makes decisions by consensus, had agreed on “the guiding principles, standards, criteria and procedures of the Brics expansion process”, said the South African president, Cyril Ramaphosa.
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