Sri Lanka’s Foreign Affairs Secretary, Aruni Wijewardane, is set to address the upcoming BRICS Outreach and BRICS Plus Summit in Kazan, Russian Federation, as the country awaits a decision on its request to join BRICS and its new Development Bank.
The summit is being hosted by Russia’s president Vladimir Putin and comes as Russia continues to wage with western-backed Ukraine. Whilst Sri Lanka has abstained from condemning Russia’s invasion of Ukraine, there have been multiple reports of Sri Lankan soldiers dying whilst fighting for and against the Russian army on the front lines in Ukraine.
Sri Lanka’s newly elected President Anura Kumara Dissanayake has written to Putin to express his interest BRICS membership whilst Sri Lanka’s Foreign Minister, Vijitha Herath, has written to other BRIC members urging for their support.
Song Wei, a professor from the School of International Relations and Diplomacy at Beijing Foreign Studies University, has noted the growing desire for BRICS membership across developing countries.
"For developing countries, the path to development lies in united self-improvement and strategic alignment through economic and trade cooperation, rather than excessive reliance on support from developed nations," she told the Global Times.
BRICS was initially formed in 2009 and its original membership comprised of Brazil, Russia, India, China and South Africa. There has been a steady growth to this members and the organisation has gained four new members this year: Iran, Egypt, Ethiopia, and the UAE.
