Shortly after Vladimir Putin wrapped up a state visit to Azerbaijan last month, Baku announced it would apply for BRICS membership. It was no coincidence that Azerbaijan’s announcement coincided with Putin’s visit. This year, Russia is hosting the BRICS summit in Kazan, a city over 800 kilometers east of Moscow, giving Putin huge sway over the next round of the group’s expansion.
There is a lot of geopolitics just around Putin’s visit to Azerbaijan.
Before being arrested in France, Pavel Durov, the CEO of Telegram, was in Azerbaijan at the same time as Putin. Then, there is Putin visiting a nation (Azerbaijan) that is at war with a Russian ally (Armenia), as that same ally quickly reorients itself around the West (Armenia is turning to the EU).
However, all of this aside, there is a separate reason why Azerbaijan’s BRICS bid matters.
Russia could be attempting to build its own camp within BRICS.
And, Russia may not be alone.
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