The Iraqi ambassador to Russia, Abdul Karim Hashim Mostafá, has described as a "good idea" that his country could join the BRICS "someday," the group of emerging economies that includes Brazil, Russia, India, China, South Africa, and other recently incorporated partners, such as Saudi Arabia and the United Arab Emirates (UAE).
"The BRICS are a very important organization and I hope that Iraq will be part of it someday," the Iraqi representative stated in declarations offered to the Russian agency Tass.
However, Mostafá stressed that Iraq's eventual entry into the BRICS "depends on many factors." "It depends on how the organization is organized and what the conditions are to be part of the BRICS," he explained, remarking further that, "undoubtedly, it would be a good idea."
The bloc, initially promoted by Russia in 2006, currently comprises eleven countries. In addition to the five founders that give the acronym its name, Saudi Arabia, Egypt, the United Arab Emirates, Ethiopia, Iran, and Indonesia have joined. Furthermore, the BRICS have nine partner states: Belarus, Bolivia, Kazakhstan, Cuba, Malaysia, Thailand, Uganda, Uzbekistan, and Nigeria.