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WORLD NEWS Friday 25 august 2023

Iran and Saudi Arabia are among 6 nations set to join the BRICS

economic bloc

By GERALD IMRAY, MOGO- chitecture is necessary, but
MOTSI MAGOME and JON it won’t happen overnight,”
GAMBRELL Guterres said. “Yet we can
Associated Press and must take practical
JOHANNESBURG (AP) — action now.”
Iran and Saudi Arabia More than 20 countries
were among six countries had formally applied to
invited Thursday to join the join BRICS ahead of the
BRICS bloc of developing Johannesburg summit and
economies in a move that more than 20 others had
showed signs of strengthen- expressed interest, indicat-
ing a China-Russia coalition ing how the bloc might
as tensions with the West resonate with many as an
spiral higher. alternative.
The United Arab Emirates, “Cooperation is key to our
Argentina, Egypt and Ethio- collective survival,” Ethio-
pia were also set to enter pian Prime Minister Abiy
BRICS from Jan. 1, 2024, Ahmed said.
joining current members South African officials
Brazil, Russia, India, China pushed back against char-
and South Africa to make acterizations that BRICS
an 11-nation bloc. was taking an anti-West
The announcement came turn under the influence
after two days of talks at From left, Brazil’s President Luiz Inacio Lula da Silva, China’s President Xi Jinping, South Africa’s of China and Russia. Putin
a summit in Johannesburg President Cyril Ramaphosa, India’s Prime Minister Narendra Modi and Russia’s Foreign Minister and Xi laced their speech-
Sergei Lavrov pose for a BRICS group photo during the 2023 BRICS Summit at the Sandton
involving Brazilian President Convention Centre in Johannesburg, South Africa, Wednesday, Aug. 23, 2023. es with criticism of the U.S.
Luiz Inácio Lula da Silva, Associated Press and its allies earlier in the
Indian Prime Minister Nar- summit, although Xi did
endra Modi, Chinese Presi- ing Thursday’s announce- population and more than BRICS has a stated aim to also call for a “lowering of
dent Xi Jinping and South ment in the heart of Johan- a quarter of the world’s amplify the voice of the the temperature” in refer-
African President Cyril Ra- nesburg’s high-rise Sandton GDP, with that set to in- Global South. All five cur- ence to the geopolitical
maphosa. Russian President financial district its most crease. The potential new rent members and dozens climate.
Vladimir Putin participated significant decision in more members include three of of other developing coun- Putin used a 17-minute pre-
in the discussions virtually than a decade. the world’s biggest oil pro- tries represented at the recorded address on the
after his travel to the sum- Mohammad Jamshidi, the ducers: Saudi Arabia, the summit repeatedly called opening day of the meet-
mit was complicated by political deputy of Iran UAE and Iran. this week for a fairer world ings to lash out at the West
an International Criminal President Ebrahim Raisi, “This membership expan- order and the reform of in- over the financial sanctions
Court arrest warrant issued called joining BRICS a “stra- sion is historic,” Chinese ternational institutions like imposed on Russia as pun-
against him over the war in tegic victory for Iran’s for- leader Xi said. “It shows the United Nations, the IMF ishment for its invasion of
Ukraine. eign policy.” the determination of BRICS and the World Bank. Ukraine.
Putin welcomed the six “Felicitations to the Su- countries for unity and de- Many in the developing The expansion of BRICS also
countries by video link. He preme Leader of Islamic velopment.” world view those institutions appears to expand China
did not mention Wednes- Revolution and great na- “Over the years, China has as Western-led and unfair to and Russia’s sphere of in-
day’s plane crash that left tion of Iran,” Jamshidi wrote stood in solidarity with de- them and a stream of lead- fluence, especially in the
Russian mercenary chief on X, the website formerly veloping countries through ers made speeches Thurs- Persian Gulf. While Saudi
Yevgeny Prigozhin and known as Twitter. thick and thin.” day calling for change. Arabia had been touted as
some of his top lieutenants Raisi attended the summit, Saudi Arabia and the UAE While that sentiment and a likely new member, Iran’s
presumed dead. as did Saudi Foreign Minis- might provide new capi- challenging the current inclusion wasn’t expected.
While there has been mo- ter Prince Faisal bin Farhan, tal for BRICS’ New Devel- international order is use- In the end, three Gulf na-
mentum for a BRICS expan- who said the oil-rich king- opment Bank. However, ful for China and Russia’s tions were in line to possibly
sion for months - pushed dom could be a leader of economists also noted that geopolitical aims, U.N. join.
largely by China and Rus- the bloc given its resources, Argentina and Egypt are Secretary-General António Until recently, the inclusion
sia - the five leaders were wealth and access to the the International Monetary Guterres said in a speech of Iran, Saudi Arabia and
locked in closed-door Red Sea and Persian Gulf. Fund’s two biggest debtors to the BRICS summit that the UAE together in the
discussions for two days However, in a twist, Saudi and have required bailouts. the calls for reform were same economic or political
Tuesday and Wednesday Arabia’s membership ap- Ethiopia, Africa’s second valid. organization would have
before emerging with an peared uncertain after most populous country He quoted figures that said, been unthinkable, as ten-
agreement on expanding Prince Faisal told the Sau- with 120 million people, has on average, African coun- sions escalated following
and a list of countries on di-owned broadcaster Al been at odds with the U.S. tries pay four times more the collapse of Tehran’s
the last day of the summit. Arabiya later Thursday that and European Union over for borrowing from interna- 2015 nuclear deal.
BRICS is a consensus-based the kingdom appreciated their criticism of the recent tional financial institutions But the UAE became the first
organization that needs all the invitation but would conflict in the country’s Ti- than the United States and to reengage diplomatically
members to agree on deci- first study the details before gray region. eight times more than the with Iran, and Saudi Arabia
sions. the proposed Jan. 1 joining Argentinian President Al- wealthiest European coun- and Iran announced they
The bloc was formed by date and take “the appro- berto Fernández said that tries. had reached a separate
Brazil, Russia, India and priate decision.” joining BRICS was “a new “Redesigning today’s out- détente in March, notably
China in 2009 and added BRICS currently represents opportunity” that “strength- dated, dysfunctional and with the help of Chinese
South Africa in 2010, mak- around 40% of the world’s ens us.” unfair global financial ar- mediation.q