PM to visit Russia for First Summit of Expanded BRICS

Prime Minister Narendra Modi will visit Russia on 22-23 October to attend the 16th BRICS Summit and hold bilateral meetings with leaders of the group's members and other invitees, the Ministry of External Affairs announced.

This is the first summit since the membership increase, as Egypt, Iran, Ethiopia, and the UAE are among several new members, all joining after being offered membership during this year's 2023 summit held in South Africa. Argentina and Saudi Arabia received invitations but Argentina turned down a spot after a change of government, while Saudi Arabia has not accepted yet.

This invitation by President Vladimir Putin for 22-23 October comes in the wake of an announcement by MEA regarding his visit, where he is also going to participate in the 16th BRICS Summit to be held in Kazan under the chairmanship of Russia.

The summit would focus on "Strengthening Multilateralism for Just Global Development and Security" and would be an important platform for leaders to discuss major global issues, according to the statement, adding that the summit would be an excellent opportunity for the review of initiatives undertaken by BRICS and identification of areas where further cooperation is possible.

The Prime Minister will also hold bilateral meetings with counterparts of BRICS member countries and other invited leaders during the visit, said the MEA.

Russian presidential aide Yury Ushakov announced in a statement that 24 leaders of the world will attend the BRICS summit in Kazan, to which delegations from a total number of 32 nations will arrive. This would be the largest foreign policy event ever hosted in Russia.

In addition to the summit proper, there will be meetings under BRICS+ on the theme "BRICS and the Global South: Building the Future of the World Together" with participants from Asia, Africa, the Middle East, and Latin America.

All leaders of the ranks from all member countries will be there, seven Presidents, and two Prime Ministers. Secretary-General of United Nations Antonio Guterres, and leaders of various aspirant countries will also be there, including Presidents Recep Tayyip Erdogan of Turkey, Ilham Aliyev of Azerbaijan, Alexander Lukashenko of Belarus, Kassym-Jomart Tokayev of Kazakhstan, etc.