Azerbaijan has applied to join BRICS bloc, which includes Russia
Azerbaijan has officially applied to join the BRICS bloc, which includes Russia and China.
This was reported by Report with reference to Azerbaijani Foreign Ministry spokesman Ayhan Hajizade, Censor.NET reports.
The report does not specify when exactly Azerbaijan applied to join the BRICS. However, the aforementioned statement by the Azerbaijani Foreign Ministry spokesperson came after Russian dictator Vladimir Putin's recent visit to Baku.
Azerbaijan announced its intention to join the BRICS back in July at the Shanghai Cooperation Organisation summit. On 3 July, the summit adopted a declaration "on the establishment of a strategic partnership between the Republic of Azerbaijan and the People's Republic of China." According to paragraph 4.5 of this declaration, the Azerbaijani side expressed its desire to join the BRICS.
As a reminder, on 18-19 August, Russian dictator Vladimir Putin paid an official visit to Azerbaijan, his first since the start of the full-scale invasion of Ukraine.
For reference:
BRICS is an organisation established in 2006 by the four largest countries by area and population: Brazil, Russia, India, and China.
They were later joined by South Africa.
The bloc is named after the English initials of the founding countries - Brazil, Russia, India, China and South Africa. In addition to these countries, the bloc includes Egypt, Iran, Ethiopia and the United Arab Emirates.
