BRICS nations — Brazil, Russia, India, China and South Africa — are not a competitor to the developed countries, China said on Monday ahead of the grouping's next summit in the country in April.

“The BRICS countries are not developing into a group of emerging markets that set themselves in competition with developed countries,” the China Foreign Minister, Mr Yang Jeichi, told reporters here.

The Prime Minister, Dr Manmohan Singh, is due to attend the summit besides the Chinese President Mr Hu Jintao, leaders of Russia, Brazil and South Africa. The summit is scheduled to be held in China's Sanya island.

This will be the first summit of the BRICS to be attended by South Africa after it was formally admitted into the grouping, which was previously known as BRIC.

Open and inclusive

“I would like to say that BRICS cooperation is open and inclusive and this is an important part of the south-south cooperation it also serves as an important bridge in north-south cooperation we believe through this leaders' meeting, the BRICS will play a bigger role in all these above mentioned areas,” Mr Yang said.

It is very important to enhance dialogues between the leaders although the countries' historical and cultural backgrounds are different, Mr Yang said, adding BRICS nations have played an important and constructive role in tackling global financial crisis and climate change and facilitating economic recovery.

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