Malaysia has sent Russia a letter of intent to join BRICS, Prime Minister of the Southeast Asian state Anwar Ibrahim said.

“Malaysia has sent a letter of application to join the group to Russia, which holds the BRICS chairmanship, expressing its willingness to become a member country or strategic partner,” he said. Anwar Ibrahim met Russian Minister of Foreign Affairs Sergey Lavrov on July 28, saying the conversation focused mainly on the topic of Malaysia’s request to join BRICS. This would have significant potential for both countries, the Malaysian politician said.

The Russian Prime Minister mentioned that during the meeting, the two sides discussed strengthening ties in key areas such as investment and trade, science and technology, agriculture, education, tourism, and culture, among others, according to Bernama, the Malaysian National News Agency. He added that he had earlier held talks on BRICS enlargement with Brazilian President Luiz Inacio Lula da Silva. Earlier, Prime Minister Anwar Ibrahim said in an interview with an online publication that the country plans to start a formal procedure to join BRICS.

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