Morocco Denies BRICS Membership Application - State Media

Morocco has not applied to join the BRICS grouping and will not attend its summit in South Africa, according to state news agency MAP. This contradicts a statement by South Africa's foreign minister, who claimed that Morocco was among the nations seeking to join the bloc. The strained relations between the two countries are due to South Africa's support for the Algeria-backed Polisario front, which seeks independence for Western Sahara, a territory claimed by Morocco. Morocco criticized South Africa for its negative and dogmatic positions on the Western Sahara issue and stated that it maintains good ties with the other BRICS member states.