ISTANBUL, October 22. /TASS/. Turkey is eager to enhance its collaboration with BRICS and anticipates that the upcoming summit in Kazan will provide momentum to this endeavor, stated Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan.
"We sincerely wish to deepen our cooperation with BRICS. I believe the summit in Kazan will significantly contribute to this effort," he was quoted saying by TRT Haber in Ankara.
"At the invitation of [Russian President Vladimir] Putin, we will visit Kazan tomorrow to participate in an extended session of the BRICS leaders," the Turkish president noted. "BRICS countries, like Turkey, are members of the Group of Twenty and cover 30% of the planet's territory and 45% of its population. They account for 40% of global oil production, 25% of exports, and two-fifths of global trade. These figures underscore the importance of the BRICS platform."
The 16th BRICS Summit, which is the key event of Russia’s chairmanship in the association, is being held in Kazan on October 22-24. The BRICS group was founded in 2006 by Brazil, Russia, India, and China, with South Africa joining it in 2011. On January 1, 2024, Egypt, Ethiopia, Iran, Saudi Arabia, the United Arab Emirates, became its full-fledged members. The Kazan summit will be the first to be attended by the new members of the association. Representatives of over 30 countries are expected to take part.