Speaking here at the 15th summit of this forum, the dignitary advocated “complementarity, solidarity, inclusion, consensus, mutually beneficial cooperation, respect for sovereignty and self-determination of peoples”.

He called for the predominance of “horizontal multilateralism, seeking that the presence and interests of emerging economies play a decisive role in the international scenario”.

In his speech, the president pointed out that the expansion of this group of countries will allow nations to access international markets without the need to compromise their dignity, without political conditioning, sanctions or militaristic intimidation.

“We firmly believe that the incorporation of Bolivia to the BRICS would be mutually beneficial, due to the concurrence in strategic areas such as energy, natural resources, agriculture, food production for export, science and technology”, the Head of State considered.

He added that this step will bring new approaches to cooperation, financing and strategic investments in critical infrastructure for integration, given Bolivia’s privileged geographical position and its status as the world’s leading lithium reserve.

Regarding this metal, he reiterated that Bolivia is looking for strategic partners for its exploitation without what happened in the past with rubber and tin, which under the conditions of imperialism only left the country poor.

Arce noted that the Brics have an increasing economic influence in a world in full evolution towards multipolarity, with a preponderance based on the real economy with solid foundations based on production and industrialization.

According to him, this is coupled with respect for nature and Mother Earth, and therefore Bolivia wants to be part of these changes.

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