
BRICS
At a summit in South Africa, the BRICS countries have decided to invite six countries to join the alliance. These are Saudi Arabia, Iran, Argentina, Egypt, Ethiopia and the United Arab Emirates, South African President Cyril Ramaphosa said. The BRICS consists of China, Russia, India, South Africa and Brazil. The expansion will give the BRICS new impetus, says China’s leader, Xi Jinping, who has attended the Johannesburg summit. Johannesburg is being followed closely by the United States and Europe. There are fears that China, together with Russia, is assembling an anti-Western alliance. Xi made no secret of the fact that enlargement must ensure that the BRICS has a much bigger voice in international politics, economics and trade. “This expansion meets the expectations of the international community and serves the interests of newly developed and developing countries,” Xi said. /ritzau/Reuters