MOSCOW, December 29. /TASS/. Russia is gaining new allies and partners in the world despite the West's dreams of isolating the country, Leonid Slutsky, chairman of the Russian State Duma Committee on International Affairs and leader of the Liberal Democratic Party of Russia (LDPR) parliamentary faction, said.

"The West so dreamed of isolating Russia, and we are gaining new allies and partners in Africa, Latin America, the Asia-Pacific region, and Europe is coming to realize this. Look at Slovakia, look at the Netherlands, look at Hungary. They can not yet be called our allies, but it is already a big difference from what was, it seems, recently," the lawmaker said in a message summarizing the results of 2023 posted on his Vkontakte page.

Slutsky pointed out that it is no coincidence that the BRICS bloc began to grow this year. "All of them - Asia, Africa, Latin America, <...> certainly the Arab world - trust Moscow more and more, see our direct and open course for a multipolar world without the dictate of some self-appointed hegemons. This course is supported and this is a qualitative change in world politics," the lawmaker added.

BRICS includes Brazil, Russia, India, China and South Africa. After the BRICS summit, which was held on August 22-24 in Johannesburg, South African President Cyril Ramaphosa announced the expansion of the association - starting from January 1, 2024, it will include Egypt, Iran, the United Arab Emirates, Saudi Arabia and Ethiopia. Russia will chair BRICS in 2024.