Summary:

On 24 August 2023, Tunisian Foreign Minister Nabil Ammar spoke at a gathering in South Africa organized by the BRICS group of states, promoting a vision of greater cooperation between Africa and the BRICS states.

The BRICS group of states formally includes Brazil, Russia, India, China, and South Africa, with six additional states being added to the group at the South Africa meeting, including Iran, Saudi Arabia, Egypt, the United Arab Emirates, Argentina and Ethiopia. The BRICS have traditionally been viewed as a group of emerging economies that could serve as a strategic alternative to conventional Western alliances such as NATO.

Meanwhile, in the days prior to the BRICS meeting, Foreign Minister Ammar met with US Ambassador to Tunisia Joey Hood and US Special Envoy to Libya Richard Norland to discuss the situation in Libya. Ammar affirmed support for a Libyan-Libyan solution to the ongoing instability in the neighboring country while also affirming the country’s long-time partnership with the US. The US officials praised Tunisia’s support and encouragement of Libyans working toward a political solution.

Outlook:  

Tunisia remains in a position diplomatically that allows it to court multiple spheres of global influence, including both the US and the BRICS bloc.

Despite being a relatively small economy, Tunisia sits at a crossroads of economic and diplomatic influence and therefore must take a balanced approach to diplomacy and partnership.

While rumors swirled earlier in 2023 that an unlikely Tunisia BRICS membership could be under consideration, such a move is likely unattractive both to the BRICS nations and to Tunisia itself which continues to benefit primarily from traditionally NATO-aligned partners including France, Germany, and the US.

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