The Central African Republic (CAR) hopes to increase its cooperation with the BRICS countries to enlist their support for various national projects, CAR Foreign Minister Sylvie Baipo-Temon told Sputnik.
"The number of countries [in BRICS] has increased since the last summit, and we want to expand our cooperation primarily with the BRICS countries to have support in different projects to be implemented in the CAR," Baipo-Temon said.
The CAR would like to become a member of BRICS, but there is a specific set of criteria the country has yet to meet to join the bloc, she added.
"Does CAR meet these criteria? Today, no, but it will focus on becoming a country that rises from the ashes, a country that is respected, a country with potential that can be used, because the CAR is economically a very strong country," the top diplomat told Sputnik.
When asked about the possibility of attending the BRICS summit in Russia in 2024, Baipo-Temon said she could take part in the event if a relevant invitation is received.
BRICS, established in 2009, is a group uniting the world's largest developing economies, which currently includes Brazil, Russia, India, China and South Africa. In August, the 15th top-level BRICS summit in Johannesburg extended invitations to Argentina, Egypt, Ethiopia, Iran, the United Arab Emirates and Saudi Arabia to join the bloc. Their full membership is scheduled to take effect on January 1, 2024.
In August, Russian President Vladimir Putin said that the Russian city of Kazan was expected to host the next BRICS summit in October 2024.