The expansion of the economic group was analyzed by the foreign ministers of the BRICS group.  Photo: @Spriter99880

Cape Town, June 1 (RHC)-- The foreign ministers of the BRICS countries (Brazil, Russia, India, China and South Africa) met Thursday in the South African city of Cape Town to analyze global developments and prepare for the summit of heads of state and government of the economic bloc to be held next August.

The South African Head of International Relations and Cooperation, Naledi Pandor, commented that the meeting also served to promote a new multilateralism.  The expansion of the economic group was also analyzed by the BRICS foreign ministers.

The next summit of BRICS heads of state and government will take place in Johannesburg next August 22-24, marked by doubts about the attendance of Russian President Vladimir Putin.

South Africa guarantees immunity to participants in the June meeting and the August BRICS summit.  As a member state of the International Criminal Court, South Africa is obliged to cooperate with the arrest of the Russian president, after that court issued an arrest warrant for the leader last March for alleged war crimes in connection with the conflict in Ukraine.

The announcement of the African country's foreign portfolio is linked to the strategic political and economic role that Moscow has in some countries of the continent, but also to historical reasons such as Russian support for the anti-colonial and liberation movements of the 20th century.

Brazil, Russia, India and China created the BRIC group in 2006, which South Africa joined in 2010 by adding the letter S to the current acronym.