Around 20,000 delegates from over 30 countries are expected to attend the three-day international forum in Kazan
Preparations for the 16th BRICS Summit in Kazan © Anatoly Medved / Photohost agency brics-russia2024.ru
The 16th BRICS summit is taking place in Kazan, where dozens of foreign leaders have gathered in Russia’s fifth-largest city for three days of intense diplomatic discussions and high-level bilateral talks as part of the international forum which offers a new vision of multilateralism.
The current BRICS member countries – Brazil, Russia, India, China, South Africa, Ethiopia, Egypt, Iran, and the United Arab Emirates – collectively represent around 46% of the world’s population and over 36% of global GDP, according to estimates from global financial institutions.
Nearly three dozen states have expressed interest in joining BRICS or deepening cooperation with the group, and many of them have sent top level delegations to Kazan. Existing members agreed to discuss granting partner status to some of these nations and may approve some bids during the summit.
On Tuesday, Russian President Vladimir Putin is expected to hold talks with Indian Prime Minister Narendra Modi, Chinese President Xi Jinping, South African President Cyril Ramaphosa, and Egyptian President Abdel Fattah El-Sisi before the summit officially begins with a dinner later in the day.
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22 October 2024
06:10 GMT
“The historic expansion of BRICS creates further opportunities to foster robust trade and development cooperation,” South African President Cyril Ramaphosa has said at the BRICS Business Forum in the Russian city of Kazan, which preceded the BRICS Summit on Tuesday.
“The group accounts for 27% of global GDP and a fifth of world exports. The opportunities for cooperation and economic progress are immense,” he added. Ramaphosa urged BRICS partners to help in the industrialization of the countries on the African continent.
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Particular attention at the BRICS Summit will be given to the potential future expansion of the economic bloc through the proposed category of ‘partner nations’.
- 05:57 GMT
The chairpersons of the BRICS New Development Bank, the Business Council, the Interbank Cooperation Mechanism, and the Women’s Business Alliance are expected to deliver reports during the upcoming summit.
- 05:53 GMT
Brazilian media reports claim the country could veto Venezuela’s potential entry into BRICS. According to G1 news outlet, President Luiz Inacio Lula da Silva is opposed to the idea and has informed his team attending the group’s summit. He will not be able to travel to Kazan due to an injury.
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According to Russian President Vladimir Putin, the number of countries engaging with BRICS has been steadily growing, with approximately 34 nations expressing interest in cooperation as of September.
“Our group is expanding. The number of friends and like-minded individuals within the BRICS association has increased, and interest in our activities is very high,” Putin said last week, stressing that the group is not an “anti-Western” organization but “simply non-Western.”
- 05:51 GMT
“India values the close cooperation within BRICS,” Prime Minister Narendra Modi said on Tuesday, prior to boarding a plane to head to the Russian city of Kazan, where the BRICS Summit is kicking off later today.
Modi called BRICS an important platform for dialogue and discussion on issues ranging from the global developmental agenda and reformed multilateralism to economic cooperation and promoting “people to people” connection.
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The conflict in Ukraine is not on the agenda for the BRICS summit, but participants are free to “discuss the topic as they see fit,” Kremlin Spokesman Dmitry Peskov told Izvestia newspaper.
- 05:48 GMT
At least 32 countries will be officially represented at this year’s BRICS Summit, most of them by their heads of state. Six international organizations will also send representatives, and this year’s summit may mark the first attended by a UN secretary-general.
Overall, around 20,000 guests are expected to take part in various BRICS events in the coming days, with nearly 2,000 journalists accredited to cover the summit, according to Rossiyskaya Gazeta.
- 05:22 GMT
Russia assumed the one-year rotating presidency of BRICS in 2024 under the motto ‘Strengthening Multilateralism for Equitable Global Development and Security’. President Putin declared that under Moscow’s chairmanship, the group will focus on positive and constructive cooperation.
“Our priorities include promoting cooperation in science, high technology, healthcare, environmental protection, culture, sports, youth exchanges, and civil society,” he said, outlining the bloc’s objectives for the year.
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BRICS was originally founded in 2006 by Brazil, Russia, India, and China, with South Africa joining in 2011. Ethiopia, Egypt, Iran, and the United Arab Emirates joined in January 2024. Saudi Arabia has yet to ratify its membership invitation.
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