Syrian Finance Minister, Kanaan Yaghi, told Russian news outlet Sputnik on 15 June that Damascus has plans to apply to join both the BRICS+ group of emerging economies and the Shanghai Cooperation Organization (SCO).
“Syria intends to apply for membership” in both organizations, the minister said, adding that it is also planning to open a branch of Russia’s Sberbank in the country.
Syria has long been an admirer of the concept behind the BRICS+ group, which represents cooperation and mutual prosperity between developing countries, particularly those targeted by western sanctions.
Syrian presidential adviser Bouthaina Shaaban said in 2013: “Praise be to God, there are countries like those of the BRICS group, that are confronting the international community with logic … The BRICS countries have been adopting a very honest and balanced position.”
That year, President Bashar al-Assad referred to BRICS+ as “a just force that seeks to bring peace, security, and cooperation among countries, far from the [western] hegemony and injustice imposed on our peoples and nations for decades.”
The finance minister’s declaration comes as several other Arab countries are looking to join BRICS+, including Saudi Arabia, who this year restored ties with Iran under a historic agreement, and has just resumed diplomatic relations with Syria after years of enmity.
Many other countries, such as Algeria, Turkiye, the UAE, and Egypt, have expressed interest in joining the organization.
Like BRICS+, the SCO also offers an opportunity for developing nations to engage in economic, energy, defense, security, and trade cooperation.
Yaghi’s comments also follow Damascus’ return to the regional fold, which – it is hoped – will help facilitate the reconstruction of Syria following 12 years of US-sponsored war, which has destroyed much of the country.
In early June, the BRICS+ group released a statement welcoming Syria’s return to the Arab League, and expressing support for a political solution that will respect the country’s sovereignty and territorial integrity.
In a recent report by International Affairs Forum (IAF), titled ‘Will BRICS Build the New Syria,’ Elio Azar writes: “The quest for Syrian reconstruction might be the BRICS nations’ golden opportunity to prove their worth as global players … as the West loses its grip over the Syrian situation, reconstruction loans and contracts offer themselves to the world’s emerging economies on a silver platter.”