Pakistan’s BRICS membership likely by 2026: diplomatic sources

Karachi: Pakistan is expected to become a BRICS member during its 18th or 19th annual summit in 2025 or 2026, according to diplomatic sources.

Economic strategist and regional expert Dr Mehmoodul Hassan Khan quoted the diplomatic sources as saying that Pakistan is about to join BRICS in the upcoming annual meeting this year or next year.

He said inclusion of Pakistan as a full member would open a new window of opportunity to further accelerate economic partnerships, seeking more inflows of foreign direct investments (FDIs), trade diversity, enhancing qualitative industrialisation, digitalisation, and artificial intelligence (AI).

Pakistan formally applied for membership of BRICS in 2023, aiming to strengthen its economic ties with the bloc’s member states.

The BRICS cooperation mechanism includes 10 full member countries: Brazil, Russia, India, China, South Africa, Egypt, Ethiopia, Iran, the United Arab Emirates, and Indonesia, which officially joined in January 2025.