The initiative, first proposed by China during talks with the China Writers Association in June 2025, is intended to broaden multilateral cultural exchange, IRNA reported.
The new network underscores BRICS’ effort to widen cooperation beyond trade and politics, creating space for cultural diplomacy and literary dialogue.
Iran, which became a full member of BRICS in January 2024, is taking part alongside Egypt, Ethiopia, the United Arab Emirates and Indonesia as newer voices in the grouping’s cultural outreach.
Russian Union of Writers co-chair Vadim Terekhin and Brazilian Academy of Letters president Marcos Freitas will head the network, joined by representatives from Brazil, Russia, India, China, South Africa, Iran, Egypt, Ethiopia, the United Arab Emirates and Indonesia.
The launch coincided with a round table on the BRICS Literary Award, first established in November 2024.
Terekhin presented the longlist of nominees, which includes authors from Iran as well as other BRICS and partner states.
Indian parliamentarian Hemang Joshi, a member of the award’s organizing committee, called the prize “a new chapter in the world of literature.”
He added, “Art and literature know no boundaries. This platform unites communities and celebrates literature at an international level.”
Ethiopian lawmaker Zelalem Melak Bogale said the award offered a chance for nations to “get to know each other better through the prism of their culture and traditions.”
The award will move forward in three stages, beginning with a longlist in September in Brazil, followed by a shortlist in October in Shanghai, and ending with the winner’s announcement in Moscow in November. The top prize, financed by the Eurasian Book Agency, is one million rubles ($11,000).
Iran Daily