Indonesian presidential candidate Prabowo Subianto told reporters during a campaign speech on foreign policy strategy that Indonesia could join the BRICS group of developing economies.

Subianto, who is currently the defense minister of the nation, said that if the move would benefit the country’s economy, there is no reason for the country not to join the group.

He also pointed out that were the country to join the BRICS alliance, it would not be in violation of the country’s non-bloc principles, since the BRICS group is economic and not political.

As he campaigned ahead of February’s presidential elections, Subianto said, “We are a part of the G20, we are also part of ASEAN (the Association of Southeast Asian Nations), we are now part of APEC (Asia-Pacific Economic Cooperation), which is also not a geopolitical association, but an economic union… So we will see, if our economic interests benefit, why not join BRICS?”

He emphasized that his country has always sought to pursue a foreign policy which allowed the nation to remain independent on the world stage. However he said that his nation’s economy is heavily dependent on foreign trade, which should mean that his nation’s economic interests are pursued first and foremost when confronting political decisions.

Currently the BRICS alliance is made up of Brazil, Russia, India, China, and South Africa, however starting in January, they will be joined by Argentina, Egypt, Ethiopia, Iran, Saudi Arabia, and the UAE. The expanded group has already eclipsed the G7 group of industrialized and developed countries that consists of the US, Canada, the UK, France, Italy, Germany, and Japan. based on the analysis of experts.

BRICS nations were responsible for 36% of the global economy compared to 30% for the G7 nations, in 2022. Last week, Bloomberg published a forecast which predicted that by 2040, the share of the global economy which will be produced by the BRICS+ nations will surge to 45%, while the share comprised by the G7 economies will shrink to 21%.