Prime Minister Narendra Modi is set to visit Russia from October 22 to 23 at the invitation of Russian President Vladimir Putin, where he will participate in the 16th BRICS Summit in Kazan.
This summit, chaired by Russia, aims to strengthen multilateralism for global development and security, according to the Ministry of External Affairs (MEA).
During his visit, PM Modi is anticipated to engage in bilateral discussions with leaders from BRICS member countries and guests. The MEA highlighted that the summit would serve as a crucial platform for leaders to deliberate on significant global issues, providing a valuable opportunity to evaluate the progress of various initiatives introduced by BRICS and to explore potential areas for future collaboration.
The BRIC (Brazil, Russia, India, and China) nations convened for the first time in St. Petersburg, Russia, in 2006. Following a series of high-level meetings, the inaugural BRIC summit took place in Yekaterinburg, Russia, in 2009. The group evolved into BRICS (adding South Africa) after the latter was welcomed as a full member during the BRIC Foreign Ministers' meeting in New York in September 2010.
Today, BRICS stands as a vital coalition of major emerging economies, representing 41 per cent of the global population, 24 per cent of the world's GDP, and over 16 per cent of international trade.
In a previous meeting in September, President Putin extended a warm invitation to PM Modi, suggesting a bilateral meeting on October 22 during the summit. Notably, he referred to PM Modi as a "good friend." This remark came during a discussion with National Security Advisor Ajit Doval at the Constantine Palace in St. Petersburg, where Putin expressed his eagerness to meet Modi.
Quoting the Russian leader, the Kremlin stated, "We will be expecting Mr. Modi in Kazan. I also suggest holding a bilateral meeting there on October 22 in order to close the books on our joint work in implementing the agreements reached during his visit to Moscow and outline some prospects for the near future. Please extend my warmest regards and best wishes to Mr. Modi, my good friend."
This will mark PM Modi's second visit to Russia in 2024; he previously traveled to Moscow in July for the 22nd India-Russia Annual Summit. During that visit, he and President Putin held a bilateral meeting, where PM Modi was honored with Russia's highest civilian accolade, the Order of St. Andrew the Apostle, at the Kremlin. The leaders also visited the Rosatom Pavilion at the VDNKh Exhibition Centre in Moscow.