Türkiye’s main NATO ally, the United States, has been quiet so far on Türkiye’s intention to join the BRICS alliance of developing markets. However, a spokesperson for the White House’s National Security Council broke the silence on the matter. Speaking to the Turkish edition of Voice of America, the spokesperson said in a written statement that the U.S. believed that countries could choose countries and groups they maintain relations with on their own.
The brief remarks came after State Department spokesperson Matthew Miller’s comments on the issue, where he said that Türkiye would remain an important ally of the U.S.
U.S. ambassador to Ankara, Jeff Flake, who left this month, expressed hope that Türkiye would not join BRICS in an interview last June. Flake, however, added that such a move would not change Ankara’s alignment with the West. "I think that they realize that Russia's economy is turning to a wartime economy. There's not much future there, particularly with the sanctions that the West has imposed," Flake told Reuters in June.
On Wednesday, Russia said that BRICS member states would consider Türkiye’s formal application for full membership.
"Türkiye has applied for full membership. We'll consider this bid," Kremlin aide Yury Ushakov told reporters in Vladivostok.
A spokesperson for Türkiye’s ruling Justice and Development Party (AK Party) confirmed its intention to join BRICS earlier this week, adding that no concrete action has yet been taken.
The country’s new diplomatic push reflects its aspirations to cultivate ties with all sides in a multipolar world while still fulfilling its obligations as a key member of NATO, sources told Bloomberg earlier this week.
Straddling Europe and Asia, Türkiye applied to join BRICS some months ago amid frustration over a lack of progress in its decades-old bid to join the European Union, the sources added. Türkiye’s accession to the EU has been essentially frozen since 2005, with talks blocked over what Ankara calls "politicized" reasons, namely the deadlock in ethnically divided Cyprus.
The bid is also partly a result of rifts with fellow NATO members after Türkiye maintained close links with Russia following its invasion of Ukraine in 2022, the people added.
"Türkiye can become a strong, prosperous, prestigious and effective country if it improves its relations with the East and the West simultaneously," Erdoğan said in Istanbul over the weekend. "Any method other than this will not benefit Türkiye but will harm it."
The BRICS grouping, named after Brazil, Russia, India, China and South Africa, includes some of the biggest emerging economies. At the start of this year, it had four new members: Iran, the United Arab Emirates (UAE), Ethiopia and Egypt. Saudi Arabia was invited to join, though the kingdom has yet to do so.
BRICS touts itself as an alternative to what its members see as Western-dominated institutions such as the World Bank and International Monetary Fund. New members can access financing through its development bank and broaden their political and trading relationships.
The AK Party has long accused Western nations of thwarting Turkish aspirations for a self-sufficient defense industry and a strong economy.
Türkiye believes that joining the BRICS countries could help the country improve its economic cooperation with Russia and China and become a trade conduit between the EU and Asia. The people said it wants to be a hub for gas exports out of Russia and Central Asia.