June 2 () –
The foreign ministers of the countries that make up the BRICS group -formed by Brazil, Russia, India, China and South Africa- met this Thursday in the African country, where the Russian Foreign Minister, Sergei Lavrov, finally attended. as well as other ministers from invited countries.
Through a statement, Lavrov stated that they have spoken about all the countries that wish to join the group -which is considered as an alternative to the G7-, which the Russian defines as “a different structure” that symbolizes the evolution of “a bipolar world”.
“This is a new organization based on the principles of equality, mutual respect, consensus, non-intervention and strict adherence to the UN Charter in all its principles and in all its relations. BRICS does not choose which principle it likes for a particular situation “, he stated forcefully.
The meeting was also attended by ministers from Saudi Arabia, the United Arab Emirates, Egypt and Kazakhstan, which would be just some of the countries that, according to the South African ambassador to the BRICS, Anil Sooklal, would like to join the group.
According to the South African portal News24, Sooklal has stated that there are at least 19 countries that have expressed interest in joining the group, including nations from Europe, Latin America and Asia.
“We think (cooperation) is important, given the high level of interest from countries around the world, from Latin America, Asia and Europe, who have formally written to us requesting to become BRICS members. This shows that a large number of countries have faith and confidence in the BRICS,” Sooklal said.
In addition, Argentina has formal permission for the countries to vote on joining the BRICS New Development Bank at the group’s next meeting. He has personally communicated this to the head of the bank, Dilma Rousseff, and to the Argentine economy minister, Sergio Massa.
