BRICS countries extend statement of support for Russian participation in G20

Representatives from Brazil, Russia, India, China, and South Africa -- economies that comprise BRICS -- met in The Hague on Monday on the sidelines of the Nuclear Security Summit.

The BRICS minsters issued a joint statement Monday asserting that Russia should be allowed to participate in the Group of 20's next meeting in Australia in November. The statement was prompted after Australian Foreign Minister Julie Bishop suggested Russia would be barred from the summit.

"The Ministers noted with concern, the recent media statement on the forthcoming G20 Summit to be held in Brisbane in November 2014. The custodianship of the G20 belongs to all Member States equally and no one Member State can unilaterally determine its nature and character."

Brazilian Ambassador to Russia Carlos Antonio Paranhos, Russian Foreign Minister Sergey Lavrov, Indian Minister of External Affairs Salman Khurshid, Chinese Foreign Minister Wang Yi, and South African Minister of International Relations and Cooperation Maite Nkoana-Mashabane participated in the meeting.

Concern over Russia's participation in the G20 summit follows a decision by the Group of Seven countries -- Canada, France, Germany, Italy, Japan, the United Kingdom, and the U.S. -- to expel Russia from the Group of Eight for its actions in Ukraine's Crimea region.

[Australian Government] [Washington Post]