The BRICS alliance is expected to announce the memberships of new countries during the upcoming 2024 summit. The 16th summit is scheduled to take place in the Kazan region of Russia in October this year. The alliance will send invitations to new developing countries that have expressed their interest to join the bloc. According to a Russian official, Russia and the bloc are actively discussing expansion.
In an interview with TV BRICS, Russia’s Deputy Minister of Foreign Affairs Sergey Ryabkov discussed how new countries have raised their chances of joining the bloc. He stated that the summit in Kazan this October will mark the achievement of new heights in the interaction between the BRICS countries. Furthermore, while the bloc didn’t have experience in expanding at the start of 2024, he feels that they have enough now to continue expansion.
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Russia Says That BRICS Is Prepared To Expand With More Members
“It is worth mentioning that all the newcomers show great enthusiasm,” Ryabkov says. “They are ready to work substantively and professionally on the agenda that the Russian Chairmanship has developed in consultation with all participants.” These requirements will set the tone for interested nations in how they should approach being a part of the alliance.
As of April 2024, around 35 countries have expressed their interest to join BRICS. While some have formally expressed their interest by submitting the applications, others have informally expressed to join the alliance. Furthermore, the larger the BRICS grows in 2024, the bigger the US dollar faces the heat. More countries will reduce reliance on the nation’s currency. The greenback is already in dangerous waters, and the BRICS de-dollarization initiative is only stirring more waves.
Speaking about the summit, Ryabkov adds, “The summit is a new point of reference and an opportunity to build on the leaders’ decisions and agreements in the future. I think it will certainly emphasize not just the growing importance of BRICS, but also the policy-shaping function of the Russian chairmanship.”
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There isn’t an exact amount of countries that will receive formal invitations to join the bloc. Five countries were invited to join in the Summer of 2023, however only four joined at the start of 2024. Therefore, BRICS may shorten the list of invites this time around.
