The BRICS group of nations has slowed down the accession of new membership in the group – it has voted to temporarily suspend new membership applications and focus on integrating the countries which have joined most recently.
Russian Foreign Minister Sergey Lavrov announced this decision in Minsk on June 25, 2024. Lavrov said that the Group of Ten BRICS members had decided to “take a break with the accession of new members in order to process the new arrivals, who have doubled the composition of the group.”
In his statement, Lavrov said that while the new arrivals are being integrated into the group, a new category of “partner countries” would be formed as a “stepping stone” to full BRICS membership.
On June 18, 2024 the Russian Deputy Foreign Minister, stated that a “key criteria for the BRICS membership or for being admitted as a partner state is the applicants’ non-participation in the policy of illegal sanctions, illegal restrictions against any of the BRICS members.”
Russia holds the rotating chairmanship of BRICS for 2024 and has announced a “special mission” to identify new members. More than 30 new countries have already formally applied to join BRICS. The Russian Federation will host the annual BRICS meeting in October. China’s Foreign Minister Wang Yi has emphasized that China backs Russia’s 2024 chairmanship of BRICS.
Source: RT News, 26 Jun, 2024. https://www.rt.com/russia/600057-lavrov-bricks-expansion-pause/