Algeria Requests to Join BRICS

The Foreign Ministers of Algeria and China in New York on Saturday, September 24, 2022. (Algerian Foreign Ministry)
The Foreign Ministers of Algeria and China in New York on Saturday, September 24, 2022. (Algerian Foreign Ministry)
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Algeria Requests to Join BRICS

The Foreign Ministers of Algeria and China in New York on Saturday, September 24, 2022. (Algerian Foreign Ministry)
The Foreign Ministers of Algeria and China in New York on Saturday, September 24, 2022. (Algerian Foreign Ministry)

China’s Foreign Minister Wang Yi welcomed Algeria's request to join the BRICS economic group, as an effort to join major powers.

This came during a meeting Saturday between Chinese State Councilor and Foreign Minister Wang Yi with his Algerian counterpart Ramtane Lamamra on the sidelines of the ongoing 77th session of the UN General Assembly in New York.

Russia had previously welcomed this step, which President Abdelmadjid Tebboune considered key to distancing Algiers “from the differences between the two global poles.”

Wi stressed that Algeria is a “great developing country and a representative of emerging economies.”

He said Beijing supports Algiers’ efforts to make the upcoming Arab League summit a success. Algeria is schedule to host the AL summit on November 1 and 2.

Wi added that his country “is ready to work with Algeria to play a constructive role in achieving global peace and development.”

Algeria has been looking for new economic and political alliances to replace its 2005 Association Agreement with the European Union, which it considers a “failed bet.”

BRICS group is composed of Brazil, Russia, India, China and South Africa. Beijing and Moscow cast it as a powerful emerging market alternative to the West.

The term BRIC describes the startling rise of Brazil, Russia, India, China. The BRIC powers had their first summit in 2009 in Russia. South Africa joined in 2010.

The group accounts for more than 40% of the world's population and about 26% of the global economy.

On September 7, Tebboune stated that his country is interested in joining the group given that it represents an “economic and political power.”

He pointed out that his country’s potential membership could “happen fast.”

He further stressed on Saturday that Algeria “seeks to raise its national income in a way that enables it to join the BRICS group,” noting that it is working to achieve this goal.

Tebboune pointed out that the government is determined to export $7 billion of non-hydrocarbon products by late 2022, which, according to his estimation, qualifies it to be part of the major powers.



Israel Seals off the Occupied West Bank

Palestinians walk by the closed Deir Sharaf checkpoint near the West Bank city of Nablus, Friday, June 13, 2025. (AP)
Palestinians walk by the closed Deir Sharaf checkpoint near the West Bank city of Nablus, Friday, June 13, 2025. (AP)
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Israel Seals off the Occupied West Bank

Palestinians walk by the closed Deir Sharaf checkpoint near the West Bank city of Nablus, Friday, June 13, 2025. (AP)
Palestinians walk by the closed Deir Sharaf checkpoint near the West Bank city of Nablus, Friday, June 13, 2025. (AP)

Israel closed all checkpoints to the Israeli-occupied West Bank Friday as the country attacked Iran, a military official said Friday.

The move sealed off entry and exit to the territory, meaning that Palestinians could not leave without special coordination.

The official spoke on the condition of anonymity in line with military recommendations.

Around 3 million Palestinians live in the West Bank under Israeli military rule.

With the world’s attention focused on Gaza, Israeli military operations in the West Bank have grown in size, frequency and intensity.

The crackdown has also left tens of thousands unemployed, as they can no longer work the mostly menial jobs in Israel that paid higher wages.

Israel launched a wave of strikes across Iran on Friday that targeted its nuclear program and military sites, killing at least two top military officers and raising the prospect of an all-out war between the two bitter adversaries. It appeared to be the most significant attack Iran has faced since its 1980s war with Iraq.

The strikes came amid simmering tensions over Iran’s rapidly advancing nuclear program and appeared certain to trigger a reprisal. In its first response, Iran fired more than 100 drones at Israel. Israel said the drones were being intercepted outside its airspace, and it was not immediately clear whether any got through.

Israeli leaders cast the attack as necessary to head off an imminent threat that Iran would build nuclear bombs, though it remains unclear how close the country is to achieving that.