"If someone from the Western group that suddenly finds BRICS highly attractive decides to break the ranks and [...] refuses to apply the sanctions policy against any of the states included in the association and files an application, then in accordance with the procedure, we will consider," Ryabkov told reporters.
New Development Bank & Russia
The New Development Bank of BRICS did not refuse to finance Russian projects, there were difficulties due to the policy pursued by the West, Sergey Ryabkov said.
"The New Development Bank did not refuse to finance projects in Russia: there were difficulties in the implementation of some aspects of this work due to sanctions pressure from a Western group hostile to us," Ryabkov told reporters.
With the change of the bank's leadership, Russia sees the desire of this financial association to find creative ways to solve this problem, the diplomat added.
Russia continues to remove obstacles that need to be overcome in order to interact with the BRICS bank, he said.
Previously, BRICS leaders placed special emphasis on the rising role of the New Development Bank, founded by the group in 2015 to facilitate funding new infrastructure projects and various endeavors by developing nations.
Despite the US-led West's sanctions, Russia has emerged as the globe's fifth-largest economy, according to the World Bank.
The 15th BRICS Summit was the largest meeting of heads of state and government of the Global South in recent years. The invitees included the leaders of 54 African countries. The summit participants agreed that from January 1, 2024, Argentina, Egypt, Iran, the United Arab Emirates, Saudi Arabia and Ethiopia will join the association. A new list of possible members of the association will be prepared for the next summit.