The club has so far included Brazil, Russia, India, China and South Africa. Now, from January 1, they will be joined by Saudi Arabia, Iran, the United Arab Emirates, Argentina, Egypt and Ethiopia.
The so-called BRICS group, which so far includes the countries Brazil, Russia, India, China and South Africa, wants to expand by six members. On 1 January 2024, Saudi Arabia, Iran, the United Arab Emirates, Argentina, Egypt and Ethiopia will join. South African President Cyril Ramaphosa said on Thursday during the group’s 15th summit in Johannesburg.
Such a step had already been hypothesized in recent days. “We must accelerate the BRICS expansion process to include more countries in the BRICS family,” Chinese President Xi Jinping said on Wednesday.
Enlargement has so far failed mainly due to the reluctance of Brazil, India and South Africa, which as democracies value good relations with Europe and the United States more than China and Russia, which have been internationally ostracized in the West after their war of aggression against Ukraine.
