On the morning of August 24th, local time, the 15th meeting of BRICS leaders held a special press conference to announce the expansion of BRICS members. UAE President Mohamed bin Zayed Al Nahyan immediately expressed his gratitude to the BRICS leaders for approving the inclusion of the UAE in this important mechanism. Fahmi, a spokesman for the Egyptian Presidential Palace, also issued a statement saying that Egyptian President Seyce is very much looking forward to strengthening cooperation with BRICS countries in the future, hoping to raise the voice of developing countries in the face of various development problems and challenges and support the rights and interests of relevant countries. Among the six countries newly invited to join the BRICS family, Egypt, Iran, Saudi Arabia and the United Arab Emirates are all located in the Middle East. People can’t help but ask, why has the Middle East become the biggest winner of this BRICS expansion?
△ The BRICS leaders’ meeting held in South Africa attracted much attention from all walks of life before the opening because it involved expansion.
Judging from the development process, the universal appeal of BRICS to developing countries around the world, including the Middle East, is the primary reason. Since South Africa joined in 2011, the BRICS countries have been formally formed. Over the past 12 years, they have maintained a stable structure, always devoted themselves to the construction of cooperation mechanisms, actively participated in international cooperation and global governance, and constantly expanded the "circle of friends" of openness, tolerance and win-win cooperation, and their influence in global governance has continued to increase. After more than ten years’ development, the cooperation foundation of BRICS countries has become increasingly solid, the fields have gradually expanded and the cooperation results have become increasingly fruitful. As of August this year, more than 40 countries have hoped to join the BRICS cooperation mechanism, and more than 20 countries have formally applied for membership, including 9 Middle Eastern countries.
The close economic ties between the BRICS countries and the Middle East have also made the desire of countries in the region to join the BRICS stronger. Edward bell, head of market economy of UAE National Bank, said that China and India are important trading partners of Saudi Arabia and UAE, and the measures taken by BRICS countries to continuously improve the international trading system will have a long-term positive impact on relevant economies. Monica Malik, chief economist of Abu Dhabi Commercial Bank, believes that joining the BRICS countries by major energy exporters such as the United Arab Emirates, Saudi Arabia and Iran will help expand their economic influence. As a global trade and service center, it is of great significance for the UAE to become a part of the BRICS mechanism, especially to participate in the discussion and development of the BRICS in the future, which is crucial for the UAE to consolidate its position as a net capital exporter.
△ Before being invited to join the BRICS cooperation mechanism, Egypt and other countries have joined the BRICS New Development Bank.
The development experience of BRICS countries, especially China, is an important reason why Middle Eastern countries attach importance to this cooperation mechanism. Nasser Saidi, former chief economist of Dubai International Financial Center, commented that the Middle East countries are facing common challenges in many economic fields, among which it is particularly critical to deal with climate change, energy transformation, infrastructure development and poverty alleviation. In particular, many oil-producing countries have been committed to realizing economic diversification in recent years to get rid of their dependence on oil revenue. Joining the BRICS mechanism is of great benefit to these countries in formulating solutions that are in line with their national conditions.
△ Nasser Sadie, former chief economist of Dubai International Financial Center
It is worth mentioning that China has played an important role in promoting new members, including four countries in the Middle East, to join the BRICS. In 2022, after China took over as the BRICS president country, it started the expansion process, pushed the leaders of relevant countries to reach an important consensus on BRICS expansion, and supported the discussion on the expansion standards and procedures. Since then, China has been steadily promoting the expansion of the organization together with BRICS members, and expressed its support for the four Middle East countries to join the BRICS cooperation mechanism on different occasions. Analysts said that the full trust of the four countries in China is also one of the driving forces for them to join the BRICS quickly, while China keeps pushing relevant countries to participate in the BRICS, hoping that the members of this cooperation mechanism will be more diversified and cover more dynamic emerging economies.
Looking at the development of BRICS, from an economic investment concept to an important economic cooperation platform, the process of emerging market countries and developing countries gradually improving their voice in global governance also reflects the common aspiration of developing countries to promote unity and self-improvement, defend multilateralism, safeguard international fairness and justice, and improve global governance under the situation that the world has undergone unprecedented changes in the past century.
△ South Africa welcomes the BRICS Summit
As South Africa’s Special Envoy for Asia and the BRICS, Sucral, said, the BRICS countries are a very inclusive organization and have always been willing to engage in dialogue with the wider international community. In November 2022, Algeria formally applied to join the BRICS countries, and Kuwait, Bahrain, Morocco, Palestine and other countries in the Middle East are also looking forward to receiving the invitation from the BRICS, which gives us reason to believe that the joining of new members, including four countries in the Middle East, is only a new starting point for BRICS cooperation, and more new members will inject new vitality into the BRICS cooperation mechanism.
Producer Mu Muli
Producer Li Chao
Reporter Jaz Li
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