Turkey has formally requested to join the BRICS group of emerging economies, Bloomberg cited informed sources as saying on Monday.
Ankara "seeks to bolster its global influence and forge new ties beyond its traditional Western allies," the sources said. President Recep Tayyip Erdogan believes “that the geopolitical center of gravity is shifting away from developed economies" and that the push to join BRICS "reflects its aspirations to cultivate ties with all sides in a multipolar world, while still fulfilling its obligations as a key member of NATO."
Turkish Foreign Minister Hakan Fidan said in early June that BRICS serves as a good alternative to the EU. Later that month, he confirmed that dialogue between Ankara and BRICS nations was ongoing – coming as Turkish frustration continued to grow due to stalled efforts to join the EU.
While Turkey has long been a member of NATO, accession talks for EU membership have faced several obstacles since they began in 2005. Turkey had applied to join the EU predecessor organization, the EEC, in 1987.
"Turkey submitted an application to join BRICS some months ago amid frustration over a lack of progress in its decades-old bid to join the EU," Bloomberg’s sources went on to say.
After Russia became the most sanctioned nation in the world following the start of the war in Ukraine in 2022, the BRICS bloc began seriously pursuing the creation of a common currency to de-dollarize trade and circumvent western sanctions.
A coalition initially made up of Brazil, Russia, India, China, and South Africa, BRICS at the start of this year expanded for the first time since 2010 to include Egypt, Iran, Ethiopia, and the UAE.
Palestine’s ambassador in Moscow, Abdel Hafeez Nofal, said on August 26 that the Palestinian Authority (PA) is planning to apply to join BRICS.
"The different and beautiful thing about BRICS compared to the EU is that it includes all civilizations and races. If it can become a little more institutional, it will produce serious benefits," Fidan said in early June.
Fidan confirmed in an interview later that month that his country may apply for an upgraded dialogue partnership with the Association of South East Asian Nations (ASEAN).
Erdogan has also shown interest in joining China’s Shanghai Cooperation Council (SCO). In early, he attended the SCO summit in Kazakhstan.
"We do not have to choose between the EU and the SCO as some people claim. On the contrary, we have to develop our relations with both these and other organizations on a win-win basis," the Turkish president said over the weekend.
"Turkiye can become a strong, prosperous, prestigious and effective country if it improves its relations with the East and the West simultaneously. Any method other than this will not benefit Turkiye, but will harm it," he added.
