Russian President Vladimir Putin attended the South African meeting remotely because he has an arrest warrant from the International Criminal Court.
President of Russia Vladimir Putin sees the BRICS group of developing countries as representing the majority of the world. The BRICS meeting began on Tuesday in Johannesburg, South Africa.
Putin will not attend the meeting on site because he has an arrest warrant from the International Criminal Court (ICC) for involvement in war crimes in Ukraine. Russia is not a member of the ICC, but South Africa is.
Putin gave a recorded statement to the meeting in which he assessed the wishes of the world population representing the BRICS countries.
– We cooperate on the principle of equality and respecting each other’s interests, Vladimir Putin told the crowd.
The meeting started with a meeting between the leaders of China and South Africa.
– Friendship and deepening cooperation are the common goals of our countries and important tasks entrusted to us, President of China Xi Jinping said after meeting the South African president Cyril Ramaphosa.
Argentina in the wake of the BRICS group
In addition to Russia, the BRICS countries include China, India, South Africa and Brazil. 40 percent of the world’s population lives in these countries and these countries represent about 20 percent of the world’s gross domestic product.
President of Brazil Luiz Inacio Lula da Silva said at the meeting that BRICS should not become an exclusive community but a multilateral institution.
– It is very important that, for example, Argentina joins the BRICS countries, Lula da Silva said of his neighboring country, which is suffering from enormous inflation.
Argentina has hoped to join the BRICS countries.
White House National Security Advisor Jake Sullivan estimates that the United States does not consider the BRICS countries to be its geopolitical rival.
– These countries are a very diverse group of states with big differences in their approach to key issues, says Jake Sullivan.