Prime Minister Narendra Modi on Tuesday embarked on his journey to Moscow to attend the 16th BRICS Summit set to be held in Kazan from October 22 and 24 under the chairmanship of Russia. This marks the prime minister's second visit to Russia in 2024 as he travelled to Moscow in July as well to attend the 22nd India-Russia Annual Summit.
According to the Ministry of External Affairs (MEA), PM Modi is also scheduled to hold bilateral meetings with his counterparts from BRICS member countries.
According to the MEA, "The Summit, themed "Strengthening Multilateralism for Just Global Development and Security," will provide an important platform for leaders to discuss key global issues.:"
It further said,"The Summit will offer a valuable opportunity to assess the progress of initiatives launched by BRICS and to identify potential areas for future collaboration."
Referring to PM Modi as a 'good friend', Russian President Vladimir Putin in September extended an invitation to PM Modi, proposing a bilateral meeting on October 22, on the sidelines of the BRICS Summit. Putin's remark and invitation came during his meeting with India's National Security Advisor Ajit Doval on the sidelines of the BRICS National Security Advisers' meeting.
The official statement issued by the Kremlin quoting Putin read, "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," the statement added.
PM's July visit flashback
On July 8 this year, in his first trip since the beginning of his third term and the start of Moscow’s invasion of Ukraine, PM Modi paid a visit to Russia to participate in the 22nd India-Russia annual summit with President Vladimir Putin.
During the bilateral meeting, discussions on the Ukraine conflict also came up where Modi told Putin that a solution to the Ukraine conflict was not possible on the battlefield and that peace talks do not succeed amidst bombs, guns and bullets.
However, PM Modi's decision to visit Moscow drew substantial criticism as well. Reacting to the image of Modi hugging Putin a day after a barrage of Russian missiles in central Ukraine killed 37 people and injured 170, Ukranian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy said, "It is a huge disappointment and a devastating blow to peace efforts to see the leader of the world's largest democracy hug the world's most bloody criminal in Moscow on such a day."
During his visit, the prime minister was officially conferred with Russia's highest civilian award ‘Order of St Andrew the Apostle’ by President Putin owing to his contribution to fostering bilateral ties between Russia and India.
About BRICS Summit 2024
The multilateral summit involving the state heads of the BRIC nations including Brazil, Russia, India, and China for the first time took place in Russia's Yekaterinburg in 2009 following a series of high-profile meetings in St Petersburg in 2006.
Later in 2010, the nomenclature changed to BRICS during a meeting in New York in September 2010 after South Africa was accepted as a full member at the BRIC Foreign Ministers'
The BRICS Summit plays an instrumental role in bringing together the major emerging economies from the world, comprising 41 per cent of the world population, 24 per cent of the world GDP and over 16 per cent share in the world trade.
