JOHANNESBURG — Foreign Minister Prince Faisal bin Farhan said on Thursday that Saudi Arabia appreciates an invitation by BRICS to join the group and would study the details before taking an appropriate decision on it. “We value the BRICS invitation and we are studying it. The Kingdom would take appropriate decision on it,” he said while speaking to Al Arabiya Television on the sidelines of the BRICS summit in Johannesburg, South Africa.

Regarding the relationship with BRICS, the foreign minister said: “The Kingdom enjoys strategic relations with BRICS countries, and we look forward to more cooperation. BRICS is a beneficial and important channel to strengthen economic cooperation.” South African President Cyril Ramaphosa announced Thursday that the BRICS club of emerging nations will admit six new members, including Saudi Arabia, UAE and Iran, at the start of next year.

Prince Faisal, head of the Saudi delegation attending the summit, addressed the BRICS Plus Dialogue and BRICS-Africa Outreach dialogue session on Thursday. The theme of the session was “BRICS and Africa: Partnership for mutually accelerated growth, sustainable development, and inclusive multilateralism.”

In his speech, the minister said that Saudi Arabia has promising economic capabilities and ingredients. “The Kingdom has effective tools and a responsible role in achieving stability of energy markets,” he said. Prince Faisal affirmed Saudi Arabia’s continuation of being a safe and reliable source of energy supplies from all its sources.

The minister said that BRICS is an important channel for enhancing economic cooperation. “The Kingdom focuses in its foreign policy on building economic partnerships.”

He also stressed that the Kingdom is moving forward with confident steps towards achieving global goals and sustainable development, and that it possesses promising economic capabilities and ingredients. “We care about the principle of respecting the sovereignty and independence of states and settling disputes by peaceful means. The Kingdom is keen to exercise its responsibilities to sustain international cooperation,” he said.

South African President Cyril Ramaphosa announced Thursday that the BRICS group of countries decided to invite Saudi Arabia and five other countries to its membership. They include the United Arab Emirates, Egypt, Iran, Argentina, and Ethiopia. “We have decided to invite the Argentine Republic, the Arab Republic of Egypt, the Federal Democratic Republic of Ethiopia, the Islamic Republic of Iran, the Kingdom of Saudi Arabia, and the United Arab Emirates, to become full members of BRICS. The membership will take effect from the first of January 2024,” Ramaphosa told the summit.

Debate on expanding the membership of the group, which includes Brazil, Russia, India, China and South Africa, topped the agenda of a three-day summit that ended on Thursday. Although the BRICS member states previously expressed their support for the expansion of the bloc, there were divisions among the leaders regarding the number and speed of joining.

The 10th BRICS summit that began on Tuesday and concludes on Thursday. The theme of the 15th annual BRICS summit is “BRICS in Africa: Collaboration for Inclusive Growth and Shared Prosperity in the 4th Industrial Revolution.” President of South Africa Cyril Ramaphosa, Chinese President, Xi Jinping, Indian Prime Minister Narendra Modi, and Brazilian President Lula Da Silva are attending the summit. Russian Foreign Minister Sergei Lavrov is representing President Vladimir Putin who will join the summit meeting via a video link. About 50 other leaders are also attending the summit.

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