Kremlin: Türkiye officially applied to join BRICS

According to Isna, according to Ushakov, Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan has accepted the Kremlin’s invitation to participate in the BRICS Summit in Kazan, Russia, which is scheduled to be held on October 22-24. Russia currently heads this organization.

“Turkey has submitted a request for full membership and we will consider it,” Ushakov told reporters on Wednesday.

“Bloomberg” News channel also reported on Monday that Ankara submitted a request for BRICS membership a few months ago, partly due to the “split” between Turkey and other NATO members over the war in Ukraine. Türkiye is the first NATO member to seek membership in the non-Western BRICS group.

Omar Celik, the spokesman of Erdogan’s ruling Justice and Development Party, confirmed that the application process is underway and that Erdogan has stated “several times” that Turkey wants to become a member of BRICS.

Celik told reporters: “Our request on this matter is clear. This process continues, but there is no concrete progress in this area. “Our president has made it clear that Turkey wants to participate in all important platforms, including BRICS.”

BRICS was established in 2006 by Brazil, Russia, India and China, and South Africa joined it in 2011. The group expanded this year when Egypt, Ethiopia, Iran and the United Arab Emirates became full members. According to Ushakov, more than 30 countries have officially applied to join.

Meanwhile, Türkiye’s request has raised concerns in the European Union.

EU spokesman Peter Stano said during a press conference in Brussels on Tuesday that Ankara, as a candidate to join the EU, must respect the EU’s values ​​and foreign policy preferences, despite having the right to choose which international organizations to join.

Turkey was announced as a candidate country for the European Union in 1999 and has been negotiating to join it since 2005. However, the European Parliament suspended accession negotiations with the country in 2019, citing human rights violations. According to Bloomberg, the Turkish leadership is apparently frustrated by the lack of progress in its decades-long effort.

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