BRICS members have decided to invite six countries, including Iran and Saudi Arabia, to become part of that bloc, South African President Cyril Ramaphosa announced at the summit in Johannesburg.
Along with Iran and Saudi Arabia, Egypt, the United Arab Emirates, Argentina and Ethiopia should also become members of the BRICS group from 2024.
The BRICS group currently consists of five developing economies, Brazil, Russia, India, China and South Africa, which reached an agreement to expand the bloc after two days of talks at this week's summit, although Ramaphosa said the idea had been in the works for more than a year.
While Saudi Arabia's accession was expected if members reached a consensus on enlargement, Iran's inclusion was seen as potentially politically problematic. China and Russia have pushed for expansion, but Brazil, India and South Africa, which have strong bilateral ties with the US, have only recently agreed.
The expansion is likely to draw further attention to Beijing's political influence in the Persian Gulf. Also, lately, the question has been raised more and more often whether BRICS is starting to take an anti-Western course under the influence of China and Russia, at a time of worsening relations between Beijing and the US and Russia's conflict with the West due to the war in Ukraine.
The BRICS bloc was founded in 2009 as a group of emerging market economies and has become one of the leading voices for greater representation of developing countries and the "Global South" in world affairs. Decisions in the group are made by consensus, which means that all members must agree on the policy.
The five members of the BRICS group currently make up about 40 percent of the world's population and have a share of more than 25 percent in the global gross domestic product. This will increase with the entry of new members, among them the world's largest oil producers, such as Saudi Arabia, the UAE and Iran.
The expansion of the BRICS group with six countries next year will be the second, since the bloc, which was formed in 2009 by Brazil, Russia, India and China, was joined by South Africa a year later.
Ramaphosa was joined by the leaders of China, Brazil and India, Xi Jinping, Luis Inacio Lula da Silva and Narendra Modi at the announcement that the bloc would expand.
Russian President Vladimir Putin did not attend the summit after the International Criminal Court issued a warrant for his arrest in March on charges of abducting children from Ukraine. Putin participated in the summit via video link, while Russia was represented in Johannesburg by Foreign Minister Sergei Lavrov.
Chinese President Xi described the upcoming increase in the number of BRICS members as "historic", saying it shows that the BRICS countries are "firmly committed to unity and development".
The political deputy of Iranian President Ebrahim Raisi, Mohamad Jamshidi, called the decision to include his country in BRICS a "historic move" and a "strategic victory of Iranian foreign policy."
The leader of the United Arab Emirates, Sheikh Mohammed bin Zayed al-Nahyan, welcomed the announcement that his country would be included in "that important group".
"We look forward to a continued commitment to cooperation for the prosperity, dignity and well-being of all countries and people around the world," Al-Nahjan said on the Ix social network.
The inclusion of Iran, Saudi Arabia and the United Arab Emirates in the same economic or political organization was unthinkable until recently due to the escalation of tensions after the collapse of the international nuclear deal between Tehran and major powers in 2015 and a series of attacks attributed to Iranian authorities.
However, the United Arab Emirates was the first to restore diplomatic contacts with Iran after the missile attacks on Abu Dhabi claimed by Yemeni rebels from the Tehran-backed Houthi movement.
In March, Saudi Arabia and Iran announced that they had reached an agreement on the restoration of diplomatic relations with the mediation of Beijing. China has been striving for closer relations with all three countries, especially with Iran, from which it has been importing oil since the collapse of the international nuclear agreement.
Both Saudi Arabia and the UAE have maintained relations with Russia since the start of its invasion of Ukraine, to the chagrin of Washington, which has long provided security guarantees to those leading oil producers.
Egyptian President Abdel Fatah el-Sisi announced that his country will cooperate and coordinate with other members to achieve the bloc's goals in economic cooperation and "raise the voice of the Global South."
The expansion is also a big boost for Ethiopia, Africa's second most populous country and one of the continent's fastest growing economies, as its government re-engages with many global partners and financial institutions after a devastating two-year conflict in the country's Tigray region.
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At the announcement that the bloc would expand, Ramaphosa was joined by the leaders of China, Brazil and India, Xi Jinping, Luis Iñasio Lula da Silva and Narendra Modi.
Russian President Vladimir Putin did not attend the summit after the International Criminal Court issued a warrant for his arrest in March on charges of abducting children from Ukraine. Putin participated in the summit via video link, while Russia was represented in Johannesburg by Foreign Minister Sergei Lavrov.
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