Russian President Vladimir Putin is hosting a summit meeting of the BRICS organization starting today in the city of Kazan, DPA reported.
The forum, which will bring together 24 heads of state and government, is considered by Putin to be part of an initiative to create a new world order to end US dominance. The meeting will continue until Thursday.
Among the more important guests, Chinese President Xi Jinping stands out. Representatives of a total of 32 countries will be present.
The original BRICS members - Brazil, Russia, India, China and South Africa - have recently been joined by countries such as the United Arab Emirates, Egypt, Ethiopia and Iran. The status of Saudi Arabia is still unclear.
Russia, which is the rotating chairman of the organization, announced that Saudi Arabia would be accepted as a member at the beginning of the year, but there is still no confirmation from Riyadh, and the kingdom itself will be represented at the meeting by its foreign minister.
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Kremlin spokesman Dmitry Peskov announced that the issue of the status of Saudi Arabia will be clarified at the meeting.
Turkey will also participate in it as an interested party.
On the eve of the forum, Putin announced that one of the main goals of the meeting will be the promotion of financial cooperation and the provision of an alternative to the SWIFT system, by which international bank payments are made. Many Russian banks were excluded from it after the invasion of Ukraine.
The establishment of a joint bank is also on the BRICS agenda.