Thailand has become a partner country of Brics starting on Wednesday, according to the Ministry of Foreign Affairs (MFA).
The government was informed of the news by Russia, this year’s chair of the economic bloc.
Brics, a bloc of major emerging economies, has nine members: Brazil, Russia, India, China, South Africa, the United Arab Emirates, Iran, Egypt and Ethiopia.
Recently, it accepted 13 “partners”. This list includes four countries in Southeast Asia: Thailand, Malaysia, Vietnam and Indonesia. The other nine countries are Algeria, Belarus, Bolivia, Cuba, Kazakhstan, Nigeria, Turkey, Uganda and Uzbekistan.
“Thailand’s partnership with Brics builds on its longstanding cooperation with the group, which began in 2017 when Thailand joined the Brics Plus mechanism. This partnership offers significant opportunities to strengthen economic ties with Brics member countries — emerging markets and developing countries with high growth potential,” according to an MFA statement.
Key areas of collaboration include trade, investment, and tourism. In addition, the partnership fosters people-to-people ties between Thailand and other Brics members and partners.
Thailand has also expressed its readiness to serve as a bridge builder between Brics and other regional groupings, such as Asean, Asia-Pacific Economic Cooperation, Asia Cooperation Dialogue, and the Bay of Bengal Initiative for Multi-Sectoral Technical and Economic Cooperation, the MFA said.
“With Brazil assuming the Brics chair in 2025, Thailand, as a partner country, will have the opportunity to participate in some meetings which can support collaboration under the Brics framework,” the ministry said.
Previously, Foreign Affairs Minister Maris Sangiampongsa said Thailand expects to become a full Brics member in the future.