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Heads of state of all BRICS applicant nations invited to Johannesburg summit — source

According to South African Foreign Minister Naledi Pandor, among the topics to be discussed at the BRICS summit will be the organization’s expansion

MOSCOW, August 14. /TASS/. The heads of all countries that have applied for membership in the BRICS group have been invited to take part in the BRICS summit in Johannesburg, South Africa, a diplomatic source in South Africa told TASS on Monday.

"Heads of African states have been invited to the summit. Apart from that, invitations have been sent to all countries - around 20 - that applied for BRICS membership. So far, we cannot say exactly how many. There will be a lot of them," the source said.

The BRICS summit will be held in Johannesburg, South Africa, on August 22-24. According to South African Foreign Minister Naledi Pandor, among the topics to be discussed at the BRICS summit will be the organization’s expansion. She noted that 23 countries, including Iran, have applied for membership.

The BRIC group was established in 2006 by Brazil, Russia, India and China. In 2011, South Africa joined the group, adding the "S" to the acronym.

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