Modi will go to Russia to join BRICS, may meet Xi, will also hold bilateral talks with Putin

New Delhi: Prime Minister Narendra Modi and Chinese President Xi Jinping will participate in the BRICS summit to be held in Kazan city of Russia on October 22-23 next week. During this period, Modi and Xi will also face each other. The Foreign Ministry said on Friday that at the invitation of Russian President Vladimir Putin, Modi will be on a two-day visit to Kazan from Tuesday to attend the BRICS summit. In Beijing, China’s Foreign Ministry spokesman said Xi would attend the summit.

Official statement has not come yet

In August last year, Prime Minister Modi and Chinese President Xi Jinping held informal talks in Johannesburg on the sidelines of the BRICS (Brazil-Russia-India-China-South Africa) summit. However, no official statement has come yet from India or China on this. Indian and Chinese troops have been locked in a sharp standoff along the LAC (Line of Actual Control) in eastern Ladakh for more than four years.

Modi can meet Russian President Putin

Modi is also expected to hold bilateral meetings with counterparts and invited leaders of BRICS member countries in Kazan, the External Affairs Ministry said. It is expected that Prime Minister Modi will hold a bilateral meeting with Russian President Putin. During this, both the leaders will discuss the Ukraine conflict. Putin had proposed a bilateral meeting with Modi on the sidelines of the BRICS summit last month, when NSA Ajit Doval met him/her in St Petersburg. Earlier, Modi had visited Moscow in July and a few weeks later he/she went to Ukraine. In conversation with Ukrainian President Zelensky, Modi said that Ukraine and Russia should sit together and end the war without wasting any time. India is ready to play an active role in restoring peace in the region. In this way, this will be Modi’s second visit to Russia in four months.

Summit being held under the chairmanship of Russia

The Ministry of External Affairs said that the BRICS conference will provide an important platform for leaders to discuss major issues of the world. In this conference, Chinese President Xi Jinping will talk to other parties to usher in a new era for the ‘Global South’. This will be the first summit after the expansion of BRICS, which is being organized under the chairmanship of Russia. BRICS originally included Brazil, Russia, India, China and South Africa, but now five more countries have joined it.

Putin said, BRICS is not ‘anti-West’

Russian President Vladimir Putin, who is going to host the New BRICS Summit, said on Friday that this forum is not ‘anti-West’, it is just a non-West group. During this he/she mentioned PM Modi and said that he/she had also said the same. Apart from this, Putin also said that the doors of BRICS are not closed for new members. BRICS will guide the world’s economic development in the coming years. Referring to economic development, Putin said that in the coming times, the economic growth of BRICS countries will be less dependent on external factors and interference. This will be important towards their economic sovereignty. Putin also said that about 30 countries have expressed their desire to join BRICS and more ideas regarding this expansion are likely to be taken up in the upcoming summit. As the group develops, non-member countries will also benefit.

he/she accused the US of trying to stop development in China. Putin said, ‘It’s like telling the sun to stop rising.’ Asked whether there was a deadline for ending the war in Ukraine, Putin said it would be difficult and counterproductive to set a deadline. he/she said that Russia would be victorious. he/she also said that members of the group are also working on financial messaging systems like SWIFT, which would not be affected by Western sanctions. Russia has been insisting on the use of local currencies of countries.

Why will the West be eyeing the summit?

Everyone’s eyes are on the BRICS summit because Chinese President Xi Jinping will also be there to participate in it. In such a situation, the question is whether Modi-Cinfing can meet, that too when recently Foreign Minister S. Jaishankar had said that the issue of withdrawing troops with China has been 75% resolved. Modi’s visit to Russia last July, albeit unwittingly, had become a topic of discussion in western countries. In such a situation, the West will also keep an eye on the meetings and statements taking place on the sidelines of this summit amid the war.