Kremlin Says NATO Membership Is Not An Obstacle To Joining BRICS

BRICS 2024 Summit in Kazan (Source: Alexey Danichev/brics-russia2024.ru Host Photo Agency via Kremlin)

Kremlin spokesman Dmitry Peskov said membership of the North Atlantic Treaty Organization (NATO) was not an obstacle to joining BRICS.

"From the BRICS point of view and BRICS' main approach, there is no objection here," Peskov told the NTV channel, answering questions about Turkey's opportunity to become a member of the association.

Earlier, Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan said he " sincerely wanted to develop cooperation with the association."

Later, Turkish Foreign Minister Hakan Fidan also confirmed Ankara's interest in joining BRICS.

Not only NATO, being a member state of the European Union will also not be an obstacle to joining BRICS. Peskov pointed out that BRICS in principle did not set terms for its participants and partners.

"These are the requirements they want to set in NATO, in the EU: "Are you with the EU or with Russia? Are you at BRICS or in NATO? But at BRICS no one says anything like that, and this makes the organization even more attractive," Peskov said.

Kremlin spokesman reminded BRICS not to have a binding law or agreement.

"But what is the most important? There is a political will that unites countries that have the same vision about development prospects. Be it political development, economic development, cultural development, and so on. This is an atmosphere where the interests of each are taken into account. This is an atmosphere where there are no hegemonic aspirations. No country claims to be the backbone of the organization," added Peskov.

It is known that Russia hosted the 16th BRICS Summit, an organization founded in 2006, in Kazan City on October 22-24.

Brazil, Russia, India, and China co-founded the organization, with South Africa joining in 2011.

On January 1, 2024, Egypt, Ethiopia, Iran, Saudi Arabia, and the United Arab Emirates became full members. The Kazan summit will be the first to be attended by a new member of the association.