The countries of Brazil, Russia, India, China, and South Africa made the much-anticipated announcement of the grouping’s expansion on Thursday. 

According to South African President Cyril Ramaphosa, Iran, Saudi Arabia, Egypt, the United Arab Emirates, Argentina, and Ethiopia will join BRICS. The six nations are anticipated to join the organisation on January 1, 2024. 

Prime Minister Narendra Modi hailed the extension of the five-nation bloc, saying that it will strengthen the faith of many nations in a multipolar international order.

In the middle of the 2000s, BRICS was founded by four nations. The first presidents’ summit of the BRICS countries took place in Russia in 2009. South Africa was added to the BRICS in 2010.

This action could pave the way for several interested nations to join a coalition dedicated to advancing the interests of the “Global South.”

The extension of the BRICS membership has always had India’s complete support, as was previously stated, Prime Minister Modi said during a press conference with the other BRICS leaders. 

In addition to congratulating the nations who had joined the BRICS, the PM expressed his satisfaction with the teams’ ability to reach consensus on the expansion’s guiding principles, norms, criteria, and procedures. 

India and China were said to be at odds over the expansion of the BRICS. According to experts, China may be attempting to woo a number of nations that share its sceptical view of the West. 

Chinese officials were mentioned in some publications before the meeting, which is taking place in Johannesburg, South Africa, as saying that the BRICS should unite to compete with the G7. 

India’s position on enlargement

India pushed for the establishment of policies and processes that would control which nations might join the BRICS, even though it had not blocked the BRICS’ expansion. Over 20 nations have submitted applications to join BRICS, according to South African authorities who spoke before the summit. Rumoured names included, among others, Cuba, the Comoros, Bolivia, Algeria, and Indonesia.