Saudi Arabia Provides Update on BRICS Membership Status
Riyadh is actively contemplating joining BRICs, with official discussions currently in progress as stated by the kingdom’s economy minister. Read Full Article at RT.com
TroibNews 
Saudi Arabia is currently considering whether to join BRICS, as indicated by the nation's economy minister, Faisal Al-Ibrahim, in an interview with Bloomberg on Monday.
BRICS, which was formed in 2009 by Brazil, Russia, India, and China, welcomed South Africa two years later. As of January 1, 2024, Egypt, Ethiopia, Iran, and the United Arab Emirates became full members, with Indonesia set to join in January 2025.
“We’ve been invited to the BRICS, similar to how we’ve been invited to many other multilateral platforms in the past historically,” Al-Ibrahim stated during the World Economic Forum in Davos, Switzerland. He noted, “We assess many different aspects of it before a decision is made and right now, we are in the middle of that.”
He emphasized that Riyadh is “always focusing on fostering more global dialogue.”
Saudi Arabia, along with five other countries, received an invitation to join BRICS during the 15th summit in Johannesburg in August 2023. However, Argentina declined the invitation under President Javier Milei, who opposed joining the group, reversing his predecessor Alberto Fernandez’s position.
In related developments, last month, Russian presidential aide Yuri Ushakov announced that the group had granted ‘partner state’ status to Belarus, Bolivia, Kazakhstan, Thailand, Cuba, Uganda, Malaysia, and Uzbekistan, effective at the start of the year.
This partner status was established at the recent BRICS summit hosted by Russia in Kazan in October 2024. It serves as an alternative to full membership after over 30 countries expressed interest in joining. Those with partner status can participate in special sessions of BRICS summits, ministerial meetings, and other high-level events. They can also contribute to the group’s outcome documents, though they do not engage in document approval or voting.
Camille Lefevre for TROIB News
BRICS, which was formed in 2009 by Brazil, Russia, India, and China, welcomed South Africa two years later. As of January 1, 2024, Egypt, Ethiopia, Iran, and the United Arab Emirates became full members, with Indonesia set to join in January 2025.
“We’ve been invited to the BRICS, similar to how we’ve been invited to many other multilateral platforms in the past historically,” Al-Ibrahim stated during the World Economic Forum in Davos, Switzerland. He noted, “We assess many different aspects of it before a decision is made and right now, we are in the middle of that.”
He emphasized that Riyadh is “always focusing on fostering more global dialogue.”
Saudi Arabia, along with five other countries, received an invitation to join BRICS during the 15th summit in Johannesburg in August 2023. However, Argentina declined the invitation under President Javier Milei, who opposed joining the group, reversing his predecessor Alberto Fernandez’s position.
In related developments, last month, Russian presidential aide Yuri Ushakov announced that the group had granted ‘partner state’ status to Belarus, Bolivia, Kazakhstan, Thailand, Cuba, Uganda, Malaysia, and Uzbekistan, effective at the start of the year.
This partner status was established at the recent BRICS summit hosted by Russia in Kazan in October 2024. It serves as an alternative to full membership after over 30 countries expressed interest in joining. Those with partner status can participate in special sessions of BRICS summits, ministerial meetings, and other high-level events. They can also contribute to the group’s outcome documents, though they do not engage in document approval or voting.
Camille Lefevre for TROIB News
