MOSCOW: Belarus, Bolivia, Indonesia, Kazakhstan, Thailand, Cuba, Malaysia, Uganda and Uzbekistan will officially become BRICS partners from January 1, 2025, Kremlin aide Yury Ushakov said on Monday.
"On the eve of the summit in Kazan, we received 35 applications to join BRICS in one condition or another,"he said, reported Sputnik/RIA Novosti.
"Undoubtedly, one of the most important results of the summit was the establishment of the category of BRICS partner countries and agreement on a list of 13 countries. Proposals were sent to these countries.
"To date, Belarus, Bolivia, Indonesia, Kazakhstan, Cuba, Thailand, Malaysia, Uganda and Uzbekistan have confirmed their readiness to become BRICS partner states," Ushakov told a briefing, adding that these countries will officially become BRICS partners from January 1, 2025.
"We expect to receive responses in the near future from four other countries to which invitations have also been sent," the aide said.
More than 20 countries show interest in the work of BRICS and the doors of the association remain open for the entry of like-minded people, Ushakov added.