Kremlin rows back from comments on Saudi BRICS membership

MOSCOW (Reuters) – The Kremlin rowed back on Tuesday from earlier comments describing Saudi Arabia as a member of the BRICS group of countries, and left open the question of whether it would be represented at a BRICS summit in Russia next week.

Saudi Arabia has been invited to join BRICS but has not yet formally done so. Last week, however, Kremlin aide Yuri Ushakov described it as a BRICS member and said its foreign minister would attend the summit in the Russian city of Kazan.

Asked to clarify Saudi Arabia’s status in BRICS, Kremlin spokesman Dmitry Peskov said: “The summit will take place now, we will supply additional information on who will represent Saudi Arabia, whether it will be represented at this summit, and we will draw conclusions from this.”