Saudi Arabia's trade with BRICS countries crosses $160 billion in 2022 At BRICS summit, FM Prince Faisal upbeat about further bolstering distinguished strategic relationship

JOHANNESBURG — Saudi Foreign Minister Prince Faisal bin Farhan praised on Thursday the distinguished strategic relationship between the Kingdom and the BRICS group. In his speech, delivered on behalf of Crown Prince and Prime Minister Mohammed bin Salman, at the BRICS dialogue conference in Johannesburg, the foreign minister said that Saudi Arabia's total bilateral trade with BRICS countries crossed $160 billion during the year 2022.
Prince Faisal, head of the Saudi delegation attending the summit, addressed the BRICS Plus Dialogue and BRICS-Africa Outreach session on Thursday. The theme of the session was "BRICS and Africa: Partnership for mutually accelerated growth, sustainable development, and inclusive multilateralism."
At the outset of the speech, Prince Faisal conveyed the greetings of Custodian of the Two Holy Mosques King Salman and the Crown Prince and Prime Minister to the participating leaders and expressed the Kingdom's appreciation of the efforts made by President Cyril Ramaphosa of South Africa to host and make these summits a success.
The minister affirmed the Kingdom's aspiration for the joint summits to pave the way for discussing ways to enhance coordination, consultation and relations based on mutual respect, as well as exploring opportunities to deepen cooperation in all fields and providing conditions of security and stability that support the paths of development and economic progress.
He said that this approach is an essential component of the Kingdom's ambitious Vision 2030. "The distinguished strategic relationship between the Kingdom and the BRICS group strengthens the frameworks of common principles, the most prominent of which is the firm belief in the principle of respecting the sovereignty and independence of states, non-interference in their affairs. This is in addition to adhering to the principles of international law, settling disputes by peaceful means, establishing international peace and security, and adopting the best multilateral diplomatic frameworks in order to achieve optimal cooperation and effective common development," he said.
Prince Faisal expressed the Kingdom's pride in being the largest trading partner of the BRICS group in the Middle East, as the total bilateral trade with the BRICS countries exceeded $160 billion in 2022, which reflects the strong relations with the group.
The minister affirmed Saudi Arabia's continuation of being a safe and reliable source of energy supplies from all its sources. "Saudi Arabia has effective tools and a responsible role in achieving stability of energy markets."
Prince Faisal said that BRICS is an important channel for enhancing economic cooperation. "The Kingdom focuses in its foreign policy on building economic partnerships," he added.
The 10th BRICS summit, which began on Tuesday, concluded on Thursday. The theme of the 15th annual BRICS summit was "BRICS in Africa: Collaboration for Inclusive Growth and Shared Prosperity in the 4th Industrial Revolution."
President of South Africa Cyril Ramaphosa, Chinese President, Xi Jinping, Indian Prime Minister Narendra Modi, and Brazilian President Lula Da Silva attended the summit. Russian Foreign Minister Sergei Lavrov represented President Vladimir Putin. About 50 other leaders also participated in the summit.