Sri Lanka to apply for BRICS membership says foreign minister

Colombo, Oct 14 (PTI) Sri Lanka's newly-appointed Foreign Minister Vijitha Herath on Monday said that Colombo will apply for membership of the BRICS (Brazil-Russia-India-China-South Africa) and the New Development Bank.
    During an interaction with the Colombo-based Diplomatic Corps, Herath said Sri Lanka considers BRICS to be an effective partnership to realise aspiration for mutually beneficial cooperation, peace and development, through strengthened and inclusive multilateralism within the framework of the UN Charter, News 1st Lanka portal reported.
    Herath said that he and the President will not be able to attend the Outreach BRICS Summit in Kazan, Russia from Oct 23-24 due to the upcoming elections.
    The foreign secretary will represent the country and place on record Sri Lanka's request for membership, he said.
    He added that he already addressed letters to his counterparts in the BRICS member states seeking support.
    Russia holds the BRICS presidency this year. BRICS is an intergovernmental organisation, comprising Brazil, Russia, India, China and South Africa. Saudi Arabia, Iran, Ethiopia, Egypt, Argentina and the United Arab Emirates have joined BRICS as new members.

(This story has not been edited by THE WEEK and is auto-generated from PTI)