Foreign ministers of the member states of the BRICS bloc have reaffirmed their commitment to strengthening cooperation in three areas: politics and security, economy and finance, and cultural and humanitarian exchanges.

A statement published on the official website of Brazil’s BRICS presidency indicated that the ministers reaffirmed their commitment at a two-day BRICS Foreign Ministers’ Meeting held in Rio de Janeiro with the participation of the BRICS member states.

The meeting was held in an expanded format with representatives of the BRICS partner countries in attendance.

The group expressed support for the idea of reforming the United Nations, including increasing the representation of developing countries in the UN Security Council of the global body.

The ministers favoured greater use of national currencies in mutual settlements and the development of their own payment platforms.

The group acknowledged the important role of the New Development Bank as a key financing instrument for emerging economies, its further expansion, and the re-election of Dilma Rousseff as president of the NDB.

The leaders acknowledged the role of Artificial Intelligence in inclusive development and expressed their intention to assist developing countries in this area. They also welcomed the work on an agreement to manage the data economy.

The ministers condemned, in strong terms, all forms of terrorism and, in particular, the attack in India on April 22 that killed at least 26 people.

They affirmed that the countries of the association would deepen cooperation in the fight against terrorism.

The foreign ministers welcomed the activities of the BRICS specialised working group and called for the finalisation and adoption of the UN Comprehensive Convention on International Terrorism.

They spoke in favour of the peaceful use of space, reliable and secure ICT environment and free access to reliable information, stressing the importance of digital literacy and agreed rules in cyberspace.

In addition, the ministers spoke out against cybercrime, reaffirming the need to reform the global financial architecture and the importance of the role of the G20.

Given the recent enlargement, they emphasised the importance of institutional strengthening of BRICS, including through the creation of a common database to facilitate access to relevant documents and background information.

The heads of the ministries supported Brazil’s BRICS chairmanship.
Russian Foreign Minister Sergey Lavrov had earlier held a news conference on the results of the BRICS Foreign Ministers’ Meeting.

He said that the parties agreed to continue working with partner countries in various formats.

In addition, the ministers emphasised the importance of strengthening the role of the world majority in solving key problems. 

(TV BRICS/NAN)