The nation of Saudi Arabia is reportedly forgoing formal membership in the intercontinental economic alliance BRICS as a means of avoiding antagonizing the US.
According to a new report by Reuters, two anonymous sources familiar with the matter say that Saudi Arabia – which was invited to BRICS in 2023 – is holding off on formally joining the alliance despite joining one of their meetings in Brazil last week and being listed as a member on the group’s website.
The inclusion of Saudi Arabia in BRICS is a diplomatically sensitive issue, and the nation has refrained from formally joining the economic bloc as it did not want to anger the US and President Trump.
BRICS – which officially formed in 2009 – is an alliance between Brazil, Russia, India, China, South Africa and other countries as a means of countering Western economic dominance. In 2024, it expanded to include other nations, such as Iran, Egypt, Ethiopia and the United Arab Emirates.
Saudi Arabia’s hesitancy to join is due to it being caught between China, its biggest exporter of oil, and the US, its security and technology partner. The US is poised to offer Saudi Arabia a $100 billion arms deal.
Last December, Trump threatened to raise tariffs on all BRICS nations to 100% if the alliance committed to creating a new currency or to another currency that would usurp the US dollar.
As stated by Trump at the time,
“The idea that the BRICS Countries are trying to move away from the dollar while we stand by and watch is OVER. We require a commitment from these countries that they will neither create a new BRICS currency, nor back any other currency to replace the mighty US dollar or, they will face 100% tariffs, and should expect to say goodbye to selling into the wonderful US economy.”
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