Pakistan Applied For BRICS Membership Years Ago, Still Hasn't Got In

Pakistan applied for a membership to join BRICS in 2023, which is a coalition of emerging economies of Brazil, Russia, India, China, and South Africa. Even though the bloc accepted Egypt, Ethiopia, Iran and the United Arab Emirates as four new members last year and became BRICS+, New Delhi's veto power within the bloc has kept Islamabad outside of BRICS.

Pakistan is among the 29 more countries that have applied for membership in BRICS and its effort to join the bloc is mostly driven by its economic challenges. According to the Pakistan Economic Survey, the country's GDP growth rate stood at 3.70 per cent.

A report by Nikkei Asia stated that Pakistan has purchased a $580 million stake in the BRICS-backed New Development Bank to diversify its financing options and to reduce its dependence on the World Bank and the International Monetary Fund.

India's Exports To BRICS' Members Rose 48.8%

Islamabad's application coincided with the group's growing recognition as a prominent group representing the Global South.

The expanded bloc now accounts for around 49 per cent of the world's population and about 40 per cent of global GDP on a purchasing power parity basis.

India's own trade with BRICS countries has also grown sharply. Its exports to the grouping rose 48.8 per cent, from USD 64.3 billion to USD 95.7 billion.

In November 2023, the Foreign Office spokesperson had told a presser that Pakistan sought to join the leading Global South bloc, mentioning that the country had warm ties with "most" BRICS members.

An "Important Role" Bid By Pakistan

In the announcement, Mumtaz Zahra Baloch, the Foreign Office spokesperson in Islamabad, called BRICS an "important group of developing countries" and confirmed that Pakistan has made a formal request to join BRICS.

"We believe that by joining BRICS, Pakistan can play an important role in furthering international cooperation and revitalising inclusive multilateralism", she said.

"We also hope that BRICS will move forward on Pakistan's request in line with its commitment to inclusive multilateralism," she added.

Meanwhile, Pakistan's ambassador to Russia Muhammad Khalid Jamali, in an interview with Russian news agency TASS, said that the country is in the process of contacting member countries for extending support to Pakistan's membership and has reached out to Russia in particular.

Despite endorsement from Moscow and Beijing, Pakistan's BRICS entry remains stalled because India's opposition acts as an insurmountable roadblock under the bloc's consensus-based admission rules, which means that full members or partner countries require unanimous approval of all existing member states.