Indonesia joins BRICS group of emerging economies

Indonesia joins Russia, China and others in the group, which is viewed as a counterweight to the West.

Indonesia has formally joined the BRICS group, a bloc of emerging economies featuring Russia, China and others that is viewed as a counterweight to the West.

Brazil, which holds the rotating presidency of the group, declared on Monday that Indonesia was set to join as a full member. Indonesia said on Tuesday that it “welcomes” the announcement.

The Ministry of Foreign Affairs in Jakarta said in a statement that BRICS membership is “a strategic step to improve the collaborations and cooperation with other developing nations, based on the principle of equality, mutual respect, and sustainable development”.

It also expressed “gratitude to Russia,” the 2024 BRICS chair, “for its support and leadership in facilitating Indonesia’s joining”.

The foreign ministry in Brazil said earlier that Southeast Asia’s most populous country “shares with the other members the will to reform the institutions of global governance and contribute positively to cooperation within the Global South”.

It noted that Indonesia’s bid to join the bloc was approved during a summit in 2023 in Johannesburg.

Its acronym originally coined by a Goldman Sachs banker at the dawn of the century, the BRICS group was formally created in 2009 by founding members Brazil, Russia, India and China. South Africa joined the following year.

The bloc expanded again last year as Iran, Egypt, Ethiopia and the United Arab Emirates became full members.

BRICS is increasingly viewed as a counterweight to the West, with the “de-dollarisation” of international trade a key goal. Many members accuse Washington of using the greenback as a political tool, and the group has proposed