The BRICS group of nations has decided to invite six countries – Argentina, Egypt, Iran, Ethiopia, Saudi Arabia and the United Arab Emirates – to become new members of the bloc, South African President Cyril Ramaphosa said on Thursday.
The debate over expanding the BRICS bloc, comprising Brazil, Russia, India, China and South Africa, has topped the agenda at a three-day summit in Johannesburg ending on Thursday.
While all BRICS members have publicly expressed support for growing the bloc, there were divisions among the leaders over how much and how quickly.
About BRICS
BRICS is an informal group of states comprising the Federative Republic of Brazil, the Russian Federation, the Republic of India, the People’s Republic of China and the Republic of South Africa.
It was the Russian side that initiated the creation of BRICS.
On 20 September 2006, the first BRICS Ministerial Meeting was held at the proposal of Russian President Vladimir Putin on the margins of a UN General Assembly Session in New York. Foreign ministers of Russia, Brazil and China and the Indian Defence Minister took part in the meeting. They expressed their interest in expanding multilateral cooperation.
On 16 May 2008, Yekaterinburg hosted Meeting of BRICS Foreign Ministers on the initiative of Russia. After the meeting, a Joint Communique was issued, reflecting common stances on topical global development issues.
Another important step was taken on 9 July 2008, when Russian President Dmitry Medvedev met with Brazilian President Luiz Inacio Lula da Silva, Indian Prime Minister Manmohan Singh and Chinese President Hu Jintao on the margins of the G8 Summit in Toyako, Japan, on the Russian initiative.
On the Russian initiative on 16 June 2009, Yekaterinburg hosted the first BRIC Summit. BRIC Leaders issued a joint statement after the Summit. The document set forth the goals of BRIC “to promote dialogue and cooperation among our countries in an incremental, proactive, pragmatic, open and transparent way. The dialogue and cooperation of the BRIC countries is conducive not only to serving common interests of emerging market economies and developing countries, but also to building a harmonious world of lasting peace and common prosperity.” The document outlined a common perception of ways to cope with the global financial and economic crisis.
The growing economic might of BRICS countries, their significance as one of the main driving forces of global economic development, their substantial population and abundant natural resources form the foundation of their influence on the international scene.
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