MINSK, November 11. /TASS/. Belarus has officially become a BRICS partner state, the press service of the country's Foreign Ministry reported to TASS.

According to the ministry, on November 5, Belarusian President Alexander Lukashenko signed a letter to his Russian counterpart, Vladimir Putin, expressing the country's readiness to join BRICS as a partner state. The document was handed over by Belarusian Foreign Minister Maxim Ryzhenkov to Russian Ambassador in Minsk, Boris Gryzlov, during a personal meeting. "The official response to the written invitation is an essential part of the procedure agreed upon by the member states for obtaining partner status. From this moment on, the country is considered an official BRICS partner state," the ministry said.

Lukashenko thanked Putin for his support and "emphasized with particular satisfaction that Belarus' participation in BRICS as a partner state was formalized during Russia's presidency," the ministry said.

According to the ministry, the status of a partner country entitles Belarus, among other things, to participate in special sessions of BRICS summits and meetings of BRICS foreign ministers on a permanent basis. Full members may also invite partners to other ministerial-level events, particularly on trade, meetings of national security representatives, and the Parliamentary Forum. Partners can also accede to BRICS final documents, thus expanding their geographical coverage and strengthening the association's voice in international affairs.

Earlier, Lukashenko stated in an interview with Izvestia on the sidelines of the BRICS Summit in Kazan that Belarus had become a partner state of the association.