While India and Brazil have been reportedly concerned that expanding BRICS membership will dilute their influence in the bloc, India's external affairs minister says the country has an open mind.

The Indian government says it is not opposed to expanding the membership of BRICS, but that the criteria for admitting new members must be clearly defined.

Indian external affairs minister Subrahmanyam Jaishankar made this clear to Daily Maverick in New Delhi on Wednesday after some uncertainty about his government's position on accepting new members.

The question of expanding the club of emerging nations will be a major topic at its 15th summit, in Sandton next week.

It now comprises Brazil, Russia, India, China and South Africa. But at its summit last year, it agreed in principle to expand membership. In the run-up to next week's summit, the bloc's officials and ministers have been thrashing out the criteria and procedures for admitting new members.

South African Minister of International Relations and Cooperation Naledi Pandor said last week that 23 nations had formally applied to join and several others had indicated an interest in doing so.

At a meeting of BRICS foreign ministers in Cape Town in June, the five countries were unable to agree on expansion. Officials privately told Daily Maverick then that China and Russia were the most enthusiastic about expansion, while India and Brazil were least in...