Malaysia submits BRICS membership application

Malaysia has applied to join the BRICS group of nations, the country's Prime Minister Anwar Ibrahim said on Sunday.

He made the remarks during a meeting with Russian Foreign Minister Sergey Lavrov who is on a two-day visit to Malaysia.

Russia is this year's rotating chair of the BRICS group.

The Malaysian prime minister said the potential membership "underscores our commitment to fostering robust international collaboration."

“We also explored avenues to enhance bilateral cooperation, with a particular focus on strengthening ties in key areas such as investment and trade, science and technology, agriculture, defense and military, education, and tourism and culture," Anwar said.

For his part, Lavrov said Russia welcomes Malaysia's interest in the group and will help to push for its membership.

The BRICS emerging-markets group, founded in 2006, until recently was made up of Brazil, Russia, India, China and South Africa. In January, it expanded to include Saudi Arabia, Egypt, Ethiopia, Iran, and the United Arab Emirates.

The group now has a combined population of about 3.5 billion, or 45% of the world's inhabitants. Together its economies are worth more than $28.5tn - about 28% of the global economy.