Russia on Wednesday 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.
Bloomberg earlier reported, citing sources, that Turkish authorities had applied to join BRICS several months ago.
According to the news agency, the issue of the association's expansion will be considered at the BRICS summit in Kazan on Oct. 22-24, which will be attended by President Recep Tayyip Erdoğan.
Türkiye’s ruling Justice and Development Party (AK Party) spokesperson Ömer Çelik too confirmed on Tuesday Türkiye was taking a step toward joining BRICS but said there was no concrete action yet.
“If there is a concrete development – a decision or evaluation by BRICS on membership – we will share that with you,” Çelik told reporters in Ankara.
In June, Foreign Minister Hakan Fidan said Türkiye would like to join BRICS but did not elaborate further.
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.
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 potentially get access to financing through its development bank as well as 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.
