MOSCOW, March 5. /TASS/. The BRICS Games are not a response to Western sanctions in sports, it is already a traditional format of cooperation, Kremlin aide Yury Ushakov said in an interview with TASS.

"The initiative to hold BRICS Games does not come in response to the illegal and discriminatory restrictions in the field of sports that were pushed through by the West, but is rather another option for diversified cooperation between member states in various fields; this time, it is the field of sports. It is not a one-time event as it has been a traditional item on the agenda for every country’s presidency since 2016," Ushakov said.

He recalled that this year's BRICS Games will be held in Russia, in Kazan. "All the interested countries are guaranteed equal access to full-fledged participation in the games," the official pointed out.

He also noted that BRICS countries were well represented at the recently concluded Games of the Future in Kazan.