CAIRO, August 21. /TASS/. Egypt believes that the BRICS group is playing an important role in the process of building a multipolar world order, Egyptian diplomat and Cairo’s former ambassador to Moscow Rauf Saad said in an interview with TASS.

"BRICS is of great significance for geopolitical balance, and it plays an important role in the building of a multipolar world order, including when it comes to the use of national currencies in trade settlements," the expert emphasized. "Currently, many countries want to join the alliance, and they strive to do so more for political reasons than economic ones," the diplomat believes.

Speaking about the upcoming BRICS summit in Johannesburg, South Africa, on August 22-24, he expressed the opinion that disagreements within the alliance, related to the political aspects of expansion, may hinder the paths of those countries that have applied to join BRICS. "This is a highly politicized question. There are differences in positions within the alliance. For example, India does not want to confront the United States, and neither does China. Meanwhile, some countries are seeking to join BRICS in order to exert pressure on the United States," Saad stated. "Perhaps they will open the doors for new members, but they will have to put forward a number of conditions for them," the diplomat speculated.

Egypt's expectations

Overall, Egypt expects that the upcoming BRICS meeting will be decisive for the country's potential membership in the organization. "We hope that practical steps towards Egypt's accession will be taken as a result of the summit. We have the support of Russia, which is already sufficient," Egyptian diplomat and former ambassador to Russia Alaa Al-Hadidi said. He expressed hope that these specific measures "will be reflected in the final statement" of the meeting.

On August 19, former Egyptian Foreign Minister Mohamed al-Orabi, who chairs the Egyptian Council of Foreign Affairs, told a TASS correspondent that Cairo intends to request membership in BRICS at the upcoming summit and hopes for Russia's support in this matter.

Last year, Egyptian President Abdel Fattah el-Sisi put forward a proposal to the government concerning joining the BRICS New Development Bank. At a meeting in December, the Egyptian Cabinet supported this initiative and approved El-Sisi’s draft resolution. At the end of January 2023, Egypt’s parliament approved an agreement allowing the country to join the new BRICS-based financial institution. On June 14, Russian Ambassador to Egypt Georgy Borisenko confirmed that Egypt had applied to join the association.

The BRICS summit takes place in Johannesburg on August 22-24 and promises to be the largest meeting of heads of state and government of Global South countries in recent years. The leaders of 54 African countries have been invited to attend. Russian President Vladimir Putin will participate in the event via video link. Russian Foreign Minister Sergey Lavrov will represent Russia in person.