The BRICS group, comprising Brazil, Russia, India, China, and South Africa, leaders have declared the admission of six new countries, signaling a new era of cooperation and global influence.
The declaration was made during the fifteenth yearly BRICS summit, a meeting where the leaders of the five-member countries come together to talk about international relations.
Argentina, Ethiopia, Iran, Saudi Arabia, Egypt, and the United Arab Emirates will officially become full-fledged members of BRICS from January 1 of next year.
Chinese President Xi Jinping, representing the economic powerhouse within the group, stressed the historical significance of this expansion.
“This membership expansion is historic.” President Jinping continued, “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.”
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Leaders from the newly inducted nations, including Ethiopia, Iran, Egypt, and the UAE, expressed their readiness to engage in productive cooperation with the BRICS group.
Ethiopian Prime Minister Abiy Ahmed celebrated what he referred to as a significant occasion for his country, which is the second-most populous in Africa.
However, Saudi Arabia’s stance remained less conclusive. Foreign Minister Prince Faisal bin Farhan of Saudi Arabia conveyed that Riyadh is in a state of anticipation, awaiting further specifics before committing fully to the expanded alliance.
Egypt and the UAE also expressed their willingness to cooperate with the loosely organized group, which represents billions of people across four continents and a significant portion of the world’s wealth.
The process leading to this expansion was characterized by the establishment of criteria for entry, thereby laying the groundwork for future enlargements of the group.
