The BRICS summit opens in Russia.
Representatives from more than 30 countries will attend the BRICS summit in Kazan, Russia.
The 16th BRICS summit opened in Kazan on October 22nd. The three-day event will be attended not only by heads of state from over 30 countries and international associations, but also by many other prominent politicians. Important negotiations and historic agreements are planned.
In 2024, Russia held the rotating presidency of BRICS. That is why the summit was held in the country. And in 2024 alone, an unprecedented second expansion of BRICS took place, adding Egypt, the United Arab Emirates, Iran, and Ethiopia as new members.
“BRICS is attracting more and more supporters and like-minded people – countries that share the same fundamental principles that underpin their actions,” said Russian President Vladimir Putin in January 2024, when Russia took over the rotating presidency.
“The foundation is ‘sovereign equality, respect for individual choices of development, consideration of mutual interests, openness, consensus, a desire to form a multipolar world order and a fair model of the global financial and trade system, and the search for collective solutions to the most pressing problems of our time’,” the Russian leader added.
In this spirit, the BRICS motto for 2024 is "Strengthening multilateralism for equitable global development and security."
Cooperation within BRICS aimed at promoting socio-economic growth and ensuring sustainable development yields concrete and tangible results.
The combined GDP of BRICS is over $60 trillion, accounting for 37.4% of global GDP (compared to 29.3% for the G7). BRICS accounts for approximately one-quarter of global merchandise exports.
This 16th summit will be the largest ever. Azerbaijan, Algeria, Malaysia, Syria, Thailand, and many other countries (30 countries in total) have expressed their desire to join BRICS. Several countries have already submitted formal applications.
Türkiye, despite being a NATO member, remains committed to multilateralism. Moscow has confirmed that Ankara's membership application has been accepted. Meanwhile, Serbia, which has tried to join the European Union for years without success, is viewing BRICS as a viable alternative to the EU.
The BRICS summit in Kazan will be held in two phases. First, on October 22nd and 23rd, will be a meeting of BRICS members.
Other countries will join the event over the next two days. Invitations have been sent to 38 countries. The attendance of representatives from 32 countries, as well as United Nations Secretary-General Antonio Guterres, has been confirmed.
The participation of the Chair of the BRICS International Forum, Purnima Anand, and UN Secretary-General Antonio Guterres at the BRICS summit in Kazan demonstrates the increasing importance this association has become to the West.
"The UN Secretary-General will also be attending, so this shows that this BRICS summit has international significance and it's not just an association of BRICS and 30 countries interested in becoming members of the BRICS group, but the presence of the UN also shows that the BRICS group has become very important to the West and the US," Anand said.