South African President Cyril Ramaphosa invited more than 60 heads of state and government to a summit in Johannesburg starting Wednesday, when several countries could be invited to join the bloc of Brazil, Russia, India, China and South Africa. said several officials familiar with the conversations. . But in the run-up to the summit, New Delhi clashed with Beijing over expansion. Tensions are rising over whether the Brics should be a non-aligned club for the economic interests of developing countries, or a political force that openly challenges the West, people briefed on India and China's positions said. South African officials said 23 countries are interested in joining. “If we expand the Brics to represent a similar share of global GDP as the G7, then our collective voice in the world will become stronger,” said a Chinese official, who declined to be identified.
Naledi Pandor, South Africa's foreign minister, said this month that it was "extremely incorrect" to view a possible expansion of the Brics as an anti-Western movement. However, Western capitals are likely to view Job Function Email Database the potential additions of Iran, Belarus and Venezuela as a move to embrace allies Russia and China. Argentina, Saudi Arabia and Indonesia are vying to be the first new members since South Africa was invited to the original group of Brazil, Russia, India and China in 2010. President Vladimir Putin will not join other Brics leaders in Johannesburg. This will prevent Pretoria from having to fulfill its legal obligation to arrest the Russian leader after the International Criminal Court charged him over the war in Ukraine. Putin is likely to attend by video link and spoke with Iran's President Ebrahim Raisi on August 17 about Tehran's request to join the Brics, according to the Kremlin.
Johannesburg on Monday for the summit and other talks with African leaders, China's Foreign Ministry said, marking a rare overseas trip for the Chinese president this year. Xi's only other international trip so far in 2023 was to Russia in March. Brazilian President Luiz Inácio Lula da Silva recently spoke out in favor of opening up Brics membership to neighbors Argentina and Venezuela, as well as Saudi Arabia and the United Arab Emirates. A senior diplomat in Brasilia said he wanted clear conditions set as a basis for any expansion. One could be a requirement for participants to join New Development Bank, the Shanghai-based lender founded by the Brics. Saudi Arabia is in talks to become the multilateral bank's ninth member. Recommended “It is important that criteria be defined for the entry of these new members,” said the diplomat. It was unlikely that all 23 countries would join at the same time, but "they need to know why the decision was made." [and] so that, if future expansions occur, the candidates know the priority issues.