Non inclusion of Dhaka in BRICS intriguing  

Why Bangladesh is not on the list of the BRICS expansion process although South Africa BRICS summit has endorsed the inclusion of Saudi Arabia, Iran, United Arab Emirates, Egypt, Ethiopia and Argentina as new members?

Foreign Ministry has replied to the query saying that they would issue a statement in this regard soon.

Analysts said Prime Minister Sheikh Hasina's participation in the summit has created a big hype and much interest in Bangladesh since June when the host South Africa President Cyril Ramaphosa invited her during a meeting in Geneva.

After that meeting, Foreign Minister Dr AK Abdul Momen told reporters that  Bangladesh was going to be a member of the new group.

Bangladesh also applied formally for the membership along with more than 40 countries applying to join BRICS, of them 23 formally applied to join the bloc, which together accounts for about a quarter of the global economy and 41.9 per cent of the world's population.

"Bangladesh is trying to show a gesture that she is not tilted to anyone but try to keep a good relationship with all .....as BRICS is being seen as a counterweight to Western powers," a senior official of the Foreign Ministry said preferring anonymity.

He said we want to watch the issue for sometime more as the grouping of five major emerging economies - China, Brazil, South Africa, Russia, and India - agreed on "the guiding principles, standards, criteria and procedures of the BRICS expansion process" before endorsing Saudi Arabia, Iran, United Arab Emirates, Egypt, Ethiopia and Argentina as new members. So we need some time, he said.

International relations expert Prof Dr Imtiaz Ahmed suggests three reasons why Bangladesh did not make it to the list.

For the first time, BRICS set criteria to take new members. We need to see that criteria whether we match or not. Second, there were issues of consensus in inducting new members. If we don't match with the criteria, then it'll not come to the table," he told media on Thursday.

Bangladesh has a good relations with the BRICS. That's important. We are already a member of the BRICS bank, he said.