BRICS Summit to focus on strengthening counter-terror cooperation, says Modi

Prime Minister Narendra Modi said on Tuesday (November 12) that the BRICS summit will focus on strengthening ties among the world’s five major economies in key areas like digital economy and science and technology, and will build mechanisms for counter-terrorism cooperation.

BRICS is the acronym coined for an association of five major emerging national economies – Brazil, Russia, India, China and South Africa.

The grouping brings together five major emerging economies comprising 42 per cent of the world’s population, having 23 per cent of the global Gross Domestic Product.

Modi, who will be in Brazil on November 13 and 14 to attend the 11th BRICS Summit, said that he will also meet Brazilian President Jair Bolsonaro to discuss ways to enhance the bilateral strategic partnership.

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“I look forward to exchanging views with other BRICS leaders with the aim to further strengthen intra-BRICS cooperation particularly on the theme of the Summit Economic growth for an innovative future,” Prime Minister Modi said in his departure statement.

“Our business and industry play an important role in intra-BRICS ties. I will be addressing BRICS Business Forum and interacting with BRICS Business Council and New Development Bank,” he said.

On the bilateral meeting with the Brazilian president, he said Brazil and India share close and ever expanding bilateral relations, including in the spheres of defence, security, trade, agriculture, energy and space.

Close cooperation between the two countries in multilateral forums has been a significant aspect of our strategic relationship, Modi said. “BRICS Summit will also provide me with the opportunity to hold useful bilateral interactions with leaders of other BRICS countries,” he said.

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This will be the sixth time Modi will be participating in the BRICS summit, his first being at Fortaleza, also in Brazil in 2014.

The prime minister is scheduled to hold separate bilateral meetings with Russian President Vladimir Putin and Chinese Premier Xi Jinping. He would also attend the BRICS business forum closing ceremony and the closed and plenary sessions of the XI BRICS Summit.

In the closed session, the discussions are expected to be focused on challenges and opportunities for the exercise of national sovereignty in the contemporary world. This will be followed by the BRICS Plenary Session, where the leaders will discuss the intra-BRICS cooperation for the economic development of BRICS societies.

A BRICS memorandum of understanding between trade and investment promotion agencies is expected to be signed. The participating leaders would also be issued on the conclusion of the summit, according to the Ministry of External Affairs.