The leaders of member states and aspiring nations are set to meet at a summit in the Russian city of Kazan later this month

Cuba has officially applied to join BRICS as a partner state, senior Foreign Ministry official Carlos Pereira has revealed. The Russian envoy in Havana, Viktor Coronelli, stated last month that President Vladimir Putin had extended an invitation to his Cuban counterpart, Miguel Diaz-Canel, to attend an upcoming BRICS summit in Kazan.

In a post on X (formerly Twitter) on Tuesday, Pereira wrote: “Cuba has officially applied for its incorporation into BRICS as a partner country in a missive to the Russian president, Vladimir Putin, who holds the presidency of the group.” The Cuban diplomat, who serves as director general on bilateral affairs, characterized the group as a “key actor in global geopolitics and a hope for the countries of the South.”

Speaking to RIA Novosti in late September, the Russian ambassador to Cuba said that “we, of course, are expecting a Cuban delegation at this [BRICS] summit in Kazan.” The official added that an “invitation was extended by our President Vladimir Putin to [Cuban President] Diaz-Canel some time ago.”

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BRICS was originally founded in 2006 by Brazil, Russia, India, and China, with South Africa joining in 2011. This year, four more countries – Egypt, Iran, Ethiopia, and the United Arab Emirates – officially became members of the group, with Saudi Arabia currently finalizing the accession process.

During a meeting of BRICS security representatives in St. Petersburg last month, Putin revealed that “as of today, around three dozen countries, 34 states to be exact, have declared their desire to join the activities of our group.” He added that current member states had agreed to discuss granting partner status to some of these nations, and to potentially approve some of the bids during the Kazan summit from October 22 to 24.

If agreed on, the partner status will become a new form of partial membership for aspiring countries, intended to act as a gradual transition toward full integration into the group.

In late September, Belarusian Foreign Minister Maksim Ryzhenkov claimed that at least ten new members, including his country, could be admitted at the event.

Earlier that month, Russian presidential aide Yury Ushakov confirmed that Türkiye had officially applied to join BRICS, becoming the first NATO state to do so.

Azerbaijan, Algeria, Vietnam, Indonesia, Pakistan, Malaysia, Nigeria, Thailand, Venezuela, Kazakhstan, Palestine, DR Congo, Gabon, Bangladesh, Bahrain, Kuwait, Senegal, and Bolivia are among the other nations that have expressed their wish to join BRICS.

With the current member states accounting for 28% of the world’s nominal gross domestic product, Putin announced last month that the group has been “working to create our own payment and settlement system.” This would help ensure the “effective and independent servicing of all foreign trade” among member states, he explained.