South African Minister of International Relations hails ties with China, ahead of BRICS summit

The South African Minister of International Relations and cooperation spoke positively about bilateral relations between Moscow and Beijing, ahead of the BRICS summit of emerging economies that kicked off on Tuesday in Russia.

Ronald Lamola described the relationship between the two nations as based on mutual trust, and said that South Africa is open to more investment and collaboration.

"It is a relationship of trust, which is mutually beneficial. With the Chinese companies having invested a lot in our country, we are looking at the benefits for our country, value add in South Africa and also local manufacturing, which we believe can help drive our economy,'' Lamola said.

The BRICS summit will last until October 24th.

Brazil, Russia, India, China and South Africa were initially included in the BRICS alliance.

This summit will be the first since the alliance expanded to encompass Egypt, the UAE, Saudia Arabia, Ethiopia and Iran.

Commonly referred to as a counterbalance to the Western-led world, the BRICS nations account for around 28 percent of the global economy.