30 countries confirm their participation in October BRICS summit

Russian Deputy Foreign Minister Sergei Ryabkov held a news briefing Thursday about the BRICS summit in Russia later this month.

Ryabkov said that 30 delegations had confirmed their participation and the membership of new countries might be considered, including Turkey, which submitted its bid to join the organization in September.

Ryabkov also said that Ukraine might be on the October summit agenda, saying that "Russia was and remains open to a political and diplomatic solution to the conflict."

The BRICS alliance was founded in 2006 by Brazil, Russia, India and China, with South Africa joining in 2010, but has recently undergone a major expansion, and now includes Iran, Egypt, Ethiopia and the United Arab Emirates. Saudi Arabia has said it’s considering joining and Azerbaijan has formally applied.