India's influence derails Pakistan, Turkey's quest for BRICS membership
- In Reports
- 11:47 AM, Oct 25, 2024
- Myind Staff
The German newspaper BILD mentioned in its October 24 report that India had rejected Turkey's bid to join BRICS citing Turkey's close ties with Pakistan. As a reflection of India’s move, Turkey failed to attain its desired result.
The online news source T24 said that the state and government officials that convened for the BRICS summit made the decision to halt the admission of new members at the moment. Iran, Egypt, Ethiopia, the United Arab Emirates and Saudi Arabia are the latest countries to join the BRICS group. Turkey, Azerbaijan, and Malaysia have also applied for membership. However, experts believe that there won't be any new members added to BRICS soon because some countries oppose further expansion.
Turkey formally applied to join BRICS on September 2. According to a report by the American news agency Bloomberg, Turkey aimed to expand its influence internationally and forge new ties outside of its conventional Western friends. The Erdoğan government, according to anonymous sources, thought that industrialised nations were losing their position as the geopolitical centre of gravity was moving away from them.
On October 24, Erdoğan attended the 16th BRICS summit in Kazan, Russia, at the invitation of Russian leader Putin. During his speech, he discussed global issues, including Israel's attacks on Palestine and a recent shooting in Turkey's capital that resulted in five deaths. In 2006, Brazil, Russia, India, and China created a group called "BRIC" to help developing countries have a bigger say in global matters. The name comes from the first letters of these countries in English. In 2011, South Africa joined, and the group was renamed "BRICS."
Even Pakistan's bid to join BRICS faced a setback when it was not designated as a partner country during the group's expansion. India's opposition is viewed as a significant factor contributing to Pakistan's exclusion from this emerging collective that represents the Global South. As a founding member alongside Brazil, Russia, China, and South Africa, India has reportedly maintained a strong stance against Pakistan's inclusion in the bloc.
However, Senior Pakistani diplomats worked diplomatically in several capitals to rally support for their BRICS candidacy and to overcome any barriers India might pose on their way to admission. Along with the likes of Turkey and Malaysia, Pakistan also officially applied for the seat in August 2023 in order to market its influence on global affairs.
Pakistan Foreign Office hoped for a positive outcome from the BRICS member countries. According to the Dawn newspaper, Pakistan Foreign Office (FO) spokesperson in Islamabad Mumtaz Zahra Baloch had said, “We believe that by joining BRICS, Pakistan can play an important role in furthering international cooperation and revitalising inclusive multilateralism. We also hope that BRICS will move forward on Pakistan’s request in line with its commitment to inclusive multilateralism.”
However, New Delhi was unlikely to back Pakistan's entry given the tense relations with India during the previous five years.
BRICS is an organisation that represents the interests of countries in the Global East and South, offering an alternative to the U.S.-led Western bloc. One of its main goals is to advocate for reforms in major Western-dominated institutions like the International Monetary Fund (IMF), the World Bank, the World Trade Organisation (WTO), and the United Nations (UN). Although Russia was the initial leader of BRICS, China has become increasingly influential within the group due to its strong economy, large population, and political power.
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