Commenting on the expansion of the BRICS grouping on Tuesday, Chinese Foreign Ministry spokesperson Wang Wenbin said that Beijing is “fully confident in BRICS’ future.”
Since the group’s inception 18 years ago, Wang said that BRICS’ “cooperation mechanism has increased cohesiveness and influence and become a positive and stable force for good in international affairs.” The addition of new members “shows exactly its bright prospect,” he stressed.
Further, Wang said that the expansion of BRICS “serves the common aspiration of emerging markets and developing countries, and follows the global trend towards multipolarity.” He pledged that Beijing would “work with BRICS partners to strive for new results in greater BRICS cooperation.”
On the 1st day of 2024, #BRICS welcomed five new members, making it a bigger family. It shows its dynamism. We have every confidence in the future of BRICS and the #GlobalSouth. pic.twitter.com/SK2aQsE0hv
— Zhang Heqing (@zhang_heqing) January 3, 2024
Russian Presidency
In line with the resolution of the 15th BRICS Summit in August 2022, Russia assumed the grouping's presidency on 1 January 2024.
On the same day, Russian President Vladimir Putin said on the expansion that the group is gaining receiving support from “like-minded countries” that share its underlying principles.
To this end, he stated that the motto for the Russian BRICS Chairmanship in 2024 will be “Strengthening Multilateralism for Equitable Global Development and Security,” and that Moscow will focus on positive and constructive cooperation with all countries involved.
Putin affirmed that Russia will continue to promote all parts of the BRICS partnership in three key areas: politics and security, the economy and finance, and cultural and humanitarian contacts.
What is BRICS?
BRICS currently comprises ten countries; the original five, namely, Brazil, Russia, India, China, and South Africa; and five new members who recently joined the bloc (i.e., Egypt, Ethiopia, Iran, Saudi Arabia, and the UAE). Together, the grouping now represents more than 40% of the world’s population and over 30% of global gross domestic product.
Argentina was also supposed to join the grouping on Monday after receiving an invitation last August. However, the country’s newly elected President Javier Milei announced on Friday that Argentina would not join the framework of developing economies.
Milei explained that the moment was not “opportune” for Argentina to join as a full member, but vowed that he will seek to “intensify bilateral ties” with BRICS members and increase “trade and investment flows.”