Uzbekistan to become BRICS partner starting January 1 — Kremlin

“One of the key outcomes of the summit in Kazan was the formation of a list of BRICS partner countries, which consists of 13 states. Invitations have been sent to these countries. As of today, Belarus, Bolivia, Indonesia, Kazakhstan, Cuba, Malaysia, Thailand, Uganda, and Uzbekistan have confirmed their readiness to become BRICS partners,” he said.

As Ushakov explained, “Starting January 1, 2025, these countries will officially have the status of BRICS partner states. However, we are expecting responses from four more countries to whom invitations have already been sent,” he added.

Representatives from these countries will be invited to special meetings within the framework of BRICS summits and foreign ministers' meetings. "We also consider it appropriate to involve partners in meetings of senior officials responsible for security issues, parliamentary forums, and other events," said the Kremlin spokesperson.

BRICS (an acronym derived from the names of Brazil, Russia, India, China, and South Africa) was founded in 2006 by Brazil, Russia, India, and China, with South Africa joining later. On January 2, 2024, Egypt, Iran, the UAE, and Ethiopia were also accepted into the group.