BRICS expansion: Saudi Arabia, 5 more countries to join bloc of nations from 2024

The BRICS bloc has invited six new countries, Argentina, Iran, the United Arab Emirates, Saudi Arabia, Ethiopia and Egypt, to join the group of countries, which jointly pledged to champion the "Global South".  

The bloc, which has Brazil, Russia, India, China and South Africa, is in Johannesburg for a three-day summit. The summit is going on at the Sandton Convention Centre in Johannesburg. The debate over the expansion of BRICS topped the agenda, Reuters reported. 

South Africa's President Cyril Ramaphosa delivered an address on August 24 and declared the names of the new members while announcing the summit's outcomes. 

"We've reached an agreement to invite Argentina, Egypt, Ethiopia, Iran, Saudi Arabia and UAE to become full members of BRICS. The membership will come into effect from January 2024," said Ramaphosa. 

“On the occasion of the 15th anniversary of BRICS we have taken the important decision to expand BRICS,” Indian Prime Minister Narendra Modi said. 

He added: "India has always believed that the addition of new members will further strengthen BRICS as an organisation and it will give our shared efforts a new impetus. This will also strengthen the belief of many countries in the multipolar world order."  

The expansion of BRICS will inject new impetus into the group’s cooperation mechanism, Chinese President Xi Jinping said. 

China, on its part, said BRICS alliance should embrace an expanded membership, thereby accommodating more developing nations. 

Welcoming the decision, UAE President Mohammed bin Zayed Al Nahyan on 24 August said his country looks forward to working with BRICS for the benefit of all. 

In a post on X, formerly known as Twitter, he said: “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."

 

Iran too hailed the expansion of BRICS as 'success for foreign policy', with a senior adviser to Iran's president on Thursday stating the country's forthcoming admission to the BRICS bloc as a triumph of diplomacy for the Islamic republic.

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