MOSCOW, August 4. /TASS/. Venezuela's formal application to join the BRICS (Russia, Brazil, India, China, and South Africa) must first be conceptually addressed with partners within the format, Russian presidential spokesman Dmitry Peskov said on Friday.
"First, we need to have a conceptual discussion about this subject. This is a very important problem - expansion issues. As previously stated, it will be on the agenda of the meeting," he said.
Venezuelan Executive Vice President Delcy Rodriguez said earlier the country had filed an official request to join the BRICS group of nations, bringing together Brazil, Russia, India, China and South Africa. "Venezulan President Nicolas Maduro has made the official announcement about the bid to join BRICS, and the Foreign Ministry has sent a corresponding request," Rodriguez told Venezolana de Television in New Delhi, where she is participating in the work of a council, bringing together India, Latin American and Caribbean nations.
The vice president emphasized that Venezuela is ready to offer "the world’s biggest oil deposits to the service of the BRICS energy commission." The country will assist the development of "new relations of cooperation" and "the creation of a new multipolar world." In her words, Venezuela is "at the forefront of the process to create international relations free of hegemony, blackmail and unilateral restrictive measures that blatantly violate the international law."
"The people of Venezuela demand that illegal sanctions [against their country] be lifted," she added.
"The world where one decaying country is pretending to rule the planet and give orders to other nations has no right to exist. This world [order] is done for," the Venezuelan vice president continued, adding that her country is "building a new multipolar world" together with BRICS.
The BRICS summit, to be held in Johannesburg on August 22-24, is expected to review official bids to join the group from a number of countries.