BRICS announces UAE, Argentina, Egypt, Ethiopia, others as new members

BRICS, an association of five emerging economies, on Thursday, announced six new members, including Argentina, Egypt, Ethiopia, Iran, Saudi Arabia, and the United Arab Emirates (UAE).

BRICS, which had Brazil, Russia, India, China, and South Africa, as members, made the announcement at its 15th BRICS Summit of Heads of State and Government which started Tuesday, August 22, and is to end Thursday, August 24 at the Sandton Convention Centre, Johannesburg, South Africa.

With the new members, BRICS now controls over 50% of the world’s oil reserves.

South Africa’s president, Cyril Ramaphosa, while making the announcement said, “BRICS itself is a diverse group of nations. It is an equal partnership of countries that have differing views but have a shared vision for a better world.

“As the five BRICS countries, we have reached agreement on the guiding principles, standards, criteria and procedures of the BRICS expansion process, which has been in discussion for quite a while. We have consensus on the first phase of this expansion process, and other phases will follow.

“We have decided to invite the Argentine Republic, the Arab Republic of Egypt, the Federal Democratic Republic of Ethiopia, the Islamic Republic of Iran, the Kingdom of Saudi Arabia, and the United Arab Emirates to become full members of BRICS, the membership will take effect from 1 January 2024,” he said.