South Africa won’t be bullied to side with global powers: Ramaphosa

Cyril Ramaphosa, the President of South Africa, has said that his country will not be forced to side with any global powers, ahead of the BRICS summit in Johannesburg.

On Sunday, President Cyril Ramaphosa addressed the nation. He vowed not to be drawn into a contest between global powers as he readied to host the BRICS summit.

South Africa’s president further said that “BRICS needs to build partnerships with other countries that share its aspirations and perspectives.” In a broadcast address to the nation on Sunday evening, he backed the expansion of the membership of BRICS. 

The leaders from member countries of BRICS will meet in Johannesburg, a city in South Africa, on Wednesday. The member countries will reportedly hold the 15th edition of the BRICS Summit. During the meeting, the leaders will also talk about the expansion of BRICS. 

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Reportedly, Xi Jinping, the President of the People’s Republic of China; Luiz Inacio Lula da Silva, the President of Brazil; and Narendra Damodardas Modi, the Prime Minister of India will attend the BRICS summit on Wednesday. 

The 2023 BRICS summit, an international relations conference, will take place from 22 August 2023 to 24 August 2023 at Sandton Convention Centre.

According to reports, Vladimir Vladimirovich Putin, the President of Russia, will not attend the BRICS summit. Sergei Lavrov, the Minister of Foreign Affairs of Russia, will represent Russia at the BRICS summit. Putin will attend the meeting online. 

Ebrahim Raisi, the President of the Islamic Republic of Iran, and Joko Widodo, the President of the Republic of Indonesia, have reportedly confirmed that they will attend the talks.

In July, South Africa said that 40 countries showed interest in joining BRICS. Argentina, the Islamic Republic of Iran, the Kingdom of Saudi Arabia, Bangladesh, Bahrain, Cuba, Ethiopia, Indonesia, and Nigeria are among the countries looking to join the BRICS.