On Thursday, Iran was officially invited to join BRICS, the group of emerging economies. The invitation was made as the BRICS leaders are meeting in Johannesburg, South Africa.
South African President Cyril Ramaphosa announced that BRICS agreed to admit Iran, Argentina, Egypt, Ethiopia, the UAE and Saudi Arabia as new members.
The five current members are BRICS – Brazil, Russia, India, China and South Africa – collectively account for around 40% of the global population and a quarter of the world’s gross domestic product (GDP).
President Ramaphosa told the summitteers that BRICS have reached a “consensus on the first phase of this expansion process” and have invited six states to become new members from January 1, 2024.
Mohammad Jamshidi, the Iranian president’s deputy chief of staff for political affairs, said Iran’s membership in BRICS is a “historic development” and a “strategic success” for the Islamic Republic’s foreign policy.
He congratulated Leader of the Islamic Revolution Ayatollah Ali Khamenei on the membership.
Iran was among dozens of countries that had sought membership in BRICS and submitted a formal application to join the economic bloc.