Changes

BRICS expanded dramatically in 2024, adding Egypt, Ethiopia, Iran, and the United Arab Emirates to its original five members.<ref>https://www.cfr.org/backgrounders/what-brics-group-and-why-it-expanding</ref> The eleven-nation bloc now represents 45% of the world’s population and more than a quarter of global [[GDP]]. More than thirty countries have expressed interest in joining, with thirteen admitted as partner countries at the October 2024 Kazan summit.

BRICS expanded dramatically in 2024, adding Egypt, Ethiopia, Iran, and the United Arab Emirates to its original five members.<ref>https://www.cfr.org/backgrounders/what-brics-group-and-why-it-expanding</ref> The eleven-nation bloc now represents 45% of the world’s population and more than a quarter of global [[GDP]]. More than thirty countries have expressed interest in joining, with thirteen admitted as partner countries at the October 2024 Kazan summit.

According to Carnegie Endowment analysis, Iran views BRICS as "both a [[geopolitical]] and [[economic]] counterweight to [[Western alliance|Western]] dominance."<ref> As one of the world’s most [[Economic sanctions|sanctioned]] nations, [[Tehran]] sees the bloc as a hedge against [[American]] pressure. Supreme Leader [[Ayatollah Ali Khamenei]] stated in January 2025 that "one of our problems today is being dependent on the [[dollar]]."

According to Carnegie Endowment analysis, Iran views BRICS as "both a [[geopolitical]] and [[economic]] counterweight to [[Western alliance|Western]] dominance."<ref>https://carnegieendowment.org/russia-eurasia/research/2025/03/brics-expansion-and-the-future-of-world-order-perspectives-from-member-states-partners-and-aspirants</ref> As one of the world’s most [[Economic sanctions|sanctioned]] nations, [[Tehran]] sees the bloc as a hedge against [[American]] pressure. Supreme Leader [[Ayatollah Ali Khamenei]] stated in January 2025 that "one of our problems today is being dependent on the [[dollar]]."

Amid [[US]]-[[Iran]]ian tensions in early 2026, [[Russian Federation]] Deputy Foreign Minister and BRICS [[Sherpa]]<ref>A Sherpa is one who does all the heavy lifting in preparation before reaching a summit.</ref> [[Sergey Ryabkov]] clarified, "I would like to remind you that BRICS is not a [[military]] union and not a [[collective security]] organization with collective defense commitments. It has never been planned as such, and there are no plans to transform it for the purpose."<ref>https://tass.com/politics/2086713</ref>

Amid [[US]]-[[Iran]]ian tensions in early 2026, [[Russian Federation]] Deputy Foreign Minister and BRICS [[Sherpa]]<ref>A Sherpa is one who does all the heavy lifting in preparation before reaching a summit.</ref> [[Sergey Ryabkov]] clarified, "I would like to remind you that BRICS is not a [[military]] union and not a [[collective security]] organization with collective defense commitments. It has never been planned as such, and there are no plans to transform it for the purpose."<ref>https://tass.com/politics/2086713</ref>