“China will continue to work with BRICS-related organizations to have in-depth discussions about BRICS expansion and establish consensus-based standards.”
China, which is hosting the BRICS bloc’s rotating presidency this year, said on Friday that it is “actively supporting” the group’s development a day after Russian Foreign Minister Sergey Lavrov indicated Saudi Arabia and Argentina wanted to join.
In an interview on Thursday, Russia’s state-run Tass news agency cited Lavrov as adding both Riyadh and Buenos Aires had expressed interest in BRICS operations.
In addition to our Saudi friends, Argentina’s Foreign Minister Santiago Cafiero has announced Argentina’s readiness to join BRICS as a full member.” Lavrov said.
According to Lavrov, the next BRICS (Brazil, Russia, India, China, and South Africa) conference is planned. “The program will include an outreach program featuring about a dozen emerging economies,” he said.
Wang Wenbin, a spokeswoman for China’s Foreign Ministry, responded to Lavrov’s BRICS expansion remarks by saying that, “as the BRICS chair this year, China actively supports BRICS expansion and BRICS Plus cooperation.”.”
Wang said the BRICS Ministers of Foreign Affairs met recently and agreed on the BRICS expansion process and held the first-ever ‘BRICS Plus’ foreign ministers’ conference “, which exemplifies the open and inclusive nature of the BRICS cooperation.”
“China will continue to hold in-depth discussions with BRICS-related parties to establish the criteria and processes for BRICS expansion agreement with all parties concerned.”
“We are looking forward to welcoming new members to the BRICS family,” he added.
The BRICS Meeting
The foreign ministers’ meeting of the five-member group, conducted electronically on May 19 under Beijing’s ‘BRICS Plus’ proposal, including foreign ministers and high officials from Kazakhstan, Saudi Arabia, Argentina, Egypt, Nigeria, Senegal, the UAE, and Thailand.
S Jaishankar, the External Affairs Minister, attended the BRICS Foreign Ministers meeting hosted by his Chinese counterpart Wang Yi.
China is preparing for the BRICS meeting this year, the dates of which have yet to be disclosed. Bangladesh, the United Arab Emirates, Egypt, and Uruguay have already joined the BRICS New Development Bank (NDB)
In an interview with TASS, Russian Foreign Minister Sergei Lavrov said that several Arab nations are interested in developing partner ties with the Shanghai Cooperation Organization (SCO), including India, Pakistan, and China. The other members are Kazakhstan, Kyrgyzstan, Russia, Tajikistan, and Uzbekistan.
“These are constructive, non-antagonistic partnerships beneficial to all,” Lavrov noted.
According to a joint statement published following the BRICS foreign ministers meeting on May 19, “the ministers remembered the BRICS efforts to extend its cooperation to other developing countries and emerging markets and supported further strengthening the BRICS Outreach and BRICS Plus Cooperation, in line with the new Terms of Reference established by the BRICS Sherpas in 2021 through inclusive, equal-footed, and flexible practices and initiatives,” according to the statement.
“The ministers favored getting BRICS members to talk about the BRICS expansion. According to a joint statement released on the Chinese Foreign Ministry’s website, “they highlighted the need to clarify the guiding principles, norms, criteria, and processes for this expanding process.”
