The Russian President Vladimir Putin will meet with other leaders in the 14th BRICS Summit, which is widely expected that a new joint agreement will be formed to rival western giants.
The BRICS was conceived in 2006 and held its initial summit meeting in Russia in 2009. The group comprises Brazil, Russia, India, China and South Africa, viewing that they represent as a voice for developing countries.
All countries in the group have not condemned Russia for the invasion of Ukraine.
The combined gross domestic production (GDP) of five countries in BRICS is over 23.5 trillion U.S. dollars in 2021, which is slightly more than the United States. The group represents nearly a quarter of global GDP in 2021.
According to the report of TASS news agency last month, Russian Industry Minister Denis Manturov called on countries in BRICS to establish joint oil and gas refining facilities with Russia, stating that it would help reduce the dependence on energy supplies from unreliable partners.
“As compared to a number of other countries, we are, of course, largely protected from risks, given our well-established cooperation in this area. But we have the opportunity to shift towards higher-margin products obtained from advanced oil refining and gas processing,” Denis Manturov said as reported by TASS news agency.
Beside the energy sector, the Russian Industry Minister also touched on biological safety, stating that given the strong positions of China and India in the production of pharmaceutical substances, joint efforts could change the global balance of power in developing innovative drugs and vaccines, conducting joint research on coming threats to the health and lives of our citizens.
The BRICS meeting this year is hosted by China in a virtual format on June 23-24, 2022.
