JOHANNESBURG, August 24. /TASS/. The BRICS countries (Brazil, Russia, India, China and South Africa) ‘note with appreciation proposals of mediation’ aimed at facilitating a peaceful settlement of the ongoing conflict in Ukraine, according to the Johannesburg-2 Declaration adopted at the 15th BRICS Summit in South Africa.
"We recall our national positions concerning the conflict in and around Ukraine as expressed at the appropriate fora, including the UNSC [the United Nations Security Council] and UNGA [the United Nations General Assembly]," the document reads.
"We note with appreciation relevant proposals of mediation and good offices aimed at peaceful resolution of the conflict through dialogue and diplomacy, including the African Leaders Peace Mission and the proposed path for peace," according to the declaration.
The BRICS group encompasses Brazil, Russia, India, China and South Africa. The group held its annual summit in Johannesburg, South Africa, on August 22-24. Leaders of 54 African countries were invited to participate in the summit.
Russian President Vladimir Putin took part in the event via video link, while Russian Foreign Minister Sergey Lavrov was onsite representing Russia in person.
South African President Cyril Ramaphosa announced after the completion of the bloc’s 15th summit in Johannesburg earlier on Thursday that Argentina, Egypt, Iran, the United Arab Emirates, Saudi Arabia and Ethiopia would join BRICS from January 1, 2024.
President Putin and African Peace Mission
Russian President Putin held a meeting with participants in the African Peace Mission on the sidelines of the Russia-Africa Summit in St. Petersburg in late July. The meeting was attended by the leaders of Egypt, the Republic of Congo, Senegal, Uganda, South Africa, the president of the Comoros as chairman of the African Union, and the foreign minister of Zambia.
At the first round of talks with the African peace mission on June 17, Putin pointed out that Moscow did not refuse to negotiate with Kiev and that it was the Ukrainian authorities who abandoned the draft treaty initialed in Istanbul in March 2022. Kremlin Spokesman Dmitry Peskov later said that after the talks, the Russian side prepared its own draft declaration, which was handed over to the South African delegation before it left St. Petersburg.