Prime Minister Narendra Modi to attend Brics summit in Russia | Latest news India

Prime Minister Narendra Modi will visit Russia on October 22-23 to attend the Brics summit, the Foreign Ministry said on Friday, amid growing speculation over the possibility of a meeting between Indian and Chinese leaders on the sidelines of the event.

Modi is expected to hold a bilateral meeting with Russian President Vladimir Putin on the sidelines of the summit to be held in Kazan, sources familiar with the matter said on condition of anonymity. China's Foreign Ministry announced Friday that President Xi Jinping will attend the summit chaired by Russia.

Speculation has grown in diplomatic circles over a possible meeting between Modi and Ji on the sidelines of the Brics summit, following a series of diplomats' meetings aimed at resolving the protracted military standoff over the border. effective control, which is in its fifth year. The confrontation has taken relations between India and China to their lowest level in six decades, with New Delhi saying the overall relationship cannot be normalized without peace and tranquility on the border.

Read also: Top BRICS economic leaders stay away from Moscow meeting

The Working Mechanism for Consultation and Coordination (WMCC) on India-China Border Affairs met in July and August, and the two sides agreed in the last meeting to intensify contacts through diplomatic and military channels to reduce disputes and find a quick solution to problems. outstanding questions regarding the BAC.

There has been no official news yet from India or China regarding a meeting between the leaders of the two countries.

The Foreign Ministry said Modi would visit Russia at the invitation of Putin to attend the Brics summit, the theme of which is strengthening multilateralism for just global development and security. The summit will allow leaders to discuss key global issues, and will also provide an opportunity to assess the progress of initiatives launched by the BRICS and identify potential areas for future collaboration, the ministry said.

Modi is expected to hold bilateral meetings with his counterparts from Brics member states and other leaders invited to the summit, the ministry said. The Brics include Brazil, Russia, India, China, South Africa, Egypt, Ethiopia, Iran and the United Arab Emirates (UAE). Saudi Arabia was invited to join the BRICS last year but has not yet done so.

In Beijing, Chinese Foreign Ministry spokesman Mao Ning told reporters that Xi would attend the Oct. 22-24 Brics summit and attend the leaders' meeting and other activities. Xi will also have in-depth exchanges with other leaders on the international situation, she said without giving details.

China is willing to work with all parties to promote BRICS cooperation, usher in an era of autonomy in the South and promote world peace and development, Mao said.

During a meeting with National Security Advisor Ajit Doval in St. Petersburg in September, Putin had proposed a bilateral meeting with Modi in Kazan on October 22 to conclude our joint work in implementing the agreements reached during his visit to Moscow. [in July] and outline some perspectives for the near future.

The bloc was formalized at the first meeting of foreign ministers from Brazil, Russia, India and China on the sidelines of the United Nations General Assembly in New York in 2006. It was expanded to the Brics with the inclusion of South Africa in 2010. Since its last expansion Each year, the group has a combined population of 3.5 billion, or 45% of the world's population, and the combined economies of its members are worth more than $28.5 trillion, or nearly 28% of the global economy.

Two key activities in the institutional development component of BRICS during the Russian presidency in 2024 are the integration of invited countries as full members and the further development of the partner country model and a list of partner countries potential, said the people cited above. India has supported the expansion of the Brics as they will emerge as a stronger voice of the Global South with the new members, said one of the people cited above.