BRICS-MOROCCOS/ – REUTERS Agency
RABAT, Aug 19 (Reuters) – Morocco has not submitted a formal application to join the BRICS group and will not attend their summit in South Africa, state news agency MAP reported on Saturday.
Citing an unnamed diplomatic source, the MAP denied a statement by South African Foreign Minister Anil Sooklal who said earlier this month that Morocco was among the nations seeking to join the bloc.
“South Africa was allowed to discuss Morocco’s ties to the BRICS without prior consultation,” the official said.
The group of the main emerging economies is currently made up of Brazil, Russia, India, China and South Africa, but its possible expansion will be discussed at the summit.
South Africa has claimed that more than 40 countries have expressed interest in joining.
The diplomatic support of South Africa to the Polisario Front, supported by Algeria, which intends to establish an independent State in Western Sahara, a territory that Morocco considers its own, has strained relations between the two countries.
Morocco is a supporter of non-divisive multilateralism and maintains good ties with the other BRICS member states, he said. (Reporting by Ahmed Eljechtimi. Editing in Spanish by Javier Leira)
Source: Ambito
