MOSCOW, September 1. /TASS/. Inviting the United Arab Emirates (UAE) to join BRICS (Brazil, Russia, India, China, South Africa) will have a positive impact on that country’s relations with Russia and other members of the organization, Russian Foreign Minister Sergey Lavrov said.

"This will be a very positive influence, both in our bilateral ties and relations between the United Arab Emirates and other members of the BRICS family," he said at a meeting with students and faculty of Moscow State Institute of International Relations (MGIMO University), replying to a question as to how inviting the UAE to BRICS would affect the organization and bilateral relations between Abu Dhabi and Moscow.

Lavrov noted that in 2022, the UAE became Russia’s leading trade partner in the Arab world. "The reason for this successful cooperation is that both the United Arab Emirates and the Russian Federation proceed from their national interests and would not tolerate any pressure which would make them sacrifice their national interests and the interests of developing their economies, their peoples," the foreign minister stressed, noting that the future of the relations between the two countries is bright.

The top Russian diplomat added that later in the day, together with the MGIMO dean and the UAE envoy, he will participate in the opening of the UAE Center at the university which will usher in a new stage in the relations between the two countries.