At least 34 countries have confirmed their participation in the upcoming BRICS Summit, which is set to take place on August 22-24 in Johannesburg, South Africa, the nation's foreign ministry has stated.
South African President Cyril Ramaphosa invited 67 state leaders to meetings within the framework of the August BRICS Summit, according to the country's foreign ministry.
"The President has therefore invited (with consensus support from his fellow BRICS Leaders) sixty-seven (67) Leaders from Africa and the global South to attend the BRICS-Africa Outreach and BRICS Plus Dialogues. The Leaders cover all the continents and regions of the global South," the foreign ministry's statement read.
According to the ministry, another 20 representatives of international organizations have also been invited to the BRICS summit, which is expected to focus on trade and investment facilitation, sustainable development, innovation and global governance reform.
"The President has also invited twenty (20) dignitaries that include the Secretary-General of the United Nations, the Chairperson of the African Union Commission, the President of the New Development Bank, the Chairs and Executive Heads of African Regional Economic Communities, African financial institutions, and the Secretary General of the African Continental Free Trade Area Secretariat and CEO of the African Union Development Agency," the statement said.
BRICS brings together the world's largest developing economies – Brazil, Russia, India, China, and South Africa. More than 40 countries have recently expressed interest in joining the group; 22 of them have already submitted formal applications, according to Anil Sooklal, South Africa's ambassador-at-large for Asia and BRICS and the country's BRICS sherpa.
Among the countries that have expressed interest in joining the BRICS club were Algeria, Ethiopia, Egypt, Zimbabwe, Iran, Saudi Arabia, Argentina, Turkey, Indonesia, and the United Arab Emirates.
Earlier, South African Ambassador to Moscow Mzuvukile Jeff Maqetuka told Sputnik in an interview that all five BRICS countries welcome the expansion of the bloc, but that it is necessary to determine the modalities of admitting new members and that this issue should be decided collectively.
The forthcoming BRICS Summit in Johannesburg on August 22-24 will be attended by the leaders of China, India, Brazil, and South Africa, with Russia represented by its Foreign Minister Sergey Lavrov. Russian President Vladimir Putin said he would participate in the summit via videoconference. The issue of BRICS expansion is expected to be on the summit's agenda.