SIDNEY, August 23. /TASS/. Russia, being one of the founding countries of BRICS (Brazil, Russia, India, China and South Africa) is acting as a unifying force in the organization and its role will be strengthened in the future, Australian expert on international affairs Gregory Clark told a TASS correspondent.

According to Clark, BRICS countries have certain differences of opinion but strong ties with Russia unite them. "Countries focus on what unites them rather than what divides them, in the case of China and India, it is their relationship with Russia," he said noting that in the future, "the role of Russia as a BRICS’ focus will become stronger."

The expert is convinced that BRICS may become "a new United Nations. If it accepted all the nations that formally (23) and informally (about the same number) want to join, this should be possible."

Given "a strong secretariat," "it could easily replace the Group of Seven and Group of 20. The former discredits itself by its openly political pro-US role. The latter is disorganized and impotent," Clark stressed noting that the diplomatic abilities of Russian President Vladimir Putin and Foreign Minister Sergey Lavrov allow for BRICS developing in that direction.

The analyst also noted that now is the time for BRICS countries to "think big." According to him, the desire of 23 countries to join the union "is something that should be considered seriously. It is the most important factor deciding BRICS’ future." Clark also sees the role of the New Development Bank as "crucial to avoid the smothering effect of US sanctions." "If it could hasten the move to a gold or resources backed currency it would be very successful," he asserted.

The BRICS group’s annual summit is held in Johannesburg on August 22-24. According to South African Minister of International Relations and Cooperation Naledi Pandor, the BRICS leaders will discuss the issue of the organization's expansion at the summit.

Gregory Clark is an expert in the field of foreign policy, an Australian diplomat who has been working for many years in Canberra’s diplomatic missions in Moscow and Hong Kong. He currently resides in Tokyo serving as the honorary president of Tama University and vice chairman of Akita International University.