Russian President Vladimir Putin said today that 34 countries want to join the BRICS group, which could be formalized at the summit to be held in October in the Russian city of Kazan.

"As of today, more than 30 countries, 34 to be precise, have expressed their desire to join the activities of our group in one way or another," said the head of state of Russia, which currently chairs the organization, at a meeting in St. Petersburg with the group's representatives responsible for national security, indicates the News quoting the Russian news agency TASS.

Putin said that in Kazan, in addition to addressing the "growing interest" in deepening cooperation between these countries, the format in which the new members will participate in the group originally created by Russia, China, Brazil, India and South Africa will be discussed.

On January 1st, Iran, Egypt, Saudi Arabia, the United Arab Emirates and Ethiopia joined the BRICS and, in recent months, countries such as Turkey and Azerbaijan have applied for membership.