By Stonix News
WORLD leaders and senior government officials from BRICS member and partner countries have begun arriving in New Delhi, India, ahead of the 18th BRICS Summit scheduled for September 12 and 13 at Bharat Mandapam.
The summit is bringing together leaders and representatives of 11 BRICS member countries and 10 partner countries under the theme, “Building for Resilience, Innovation, Cooperation, and Sustainability.”
The BRICS membership comprises Brazil, China, Egypt, Ethiopia, India, Indonesia, Iran, Russia, Saudi Arabia, South Africa and the United Arab Emirates. Together, the member countries represent about 49 per cent of the world’s population and 40 per cent of global GDP.
The Indian Ministry of External Affairs confirmed the arrival of Russian President Vladimir Putin in New Delhi in the early hours of Friday.
Iranian President Masoud Pezeshkian is expected to arrive later on Friday, while Chinese President Xi Jinping is scheduled to arrive on Saturday at about 12:15pm. His visit will mark his first trip to India in almost seven years.
South African President Cyril Ramaphosa and Ugandan Vice-President Jessica Alupo have also arrived in New Delhi.
Nigeria will be represented by Vice-President Kashim Shettima, who will attend the summit on behalf of President Bola Tinubu.
The United Arab Emirates will be represented by Abu Dhabi Crown Prince Sheikh Khaled bin Mohamed bin Zayed Al Nahyan, while Brazil will be represented by its Foreign Affairs Minister, Mauro Vieira.
Other high-level participants expected at the summit include United Nations Secretary-General Antonio Guterres, New Development Bank President Dilma Rousseff, Egyptian President Abdel Fattah El-Sisi, Ethiopian Prime Minister Abiy Ahmed Ali and Burundian President Evariste Ndayishimiye.
Malaysian Prime Minister Anwar Ibrahim, Indonesian President Prabowo Subianto, Vietnamese Prime Minister Le Minh Hung and Philippine President Ferdinand Marcos Jr. are also expected in Delhi for the summit.
Other expected participants include Uruguay’s Foreign Affairs Minister Mario Lubetkin, World Health Organisation Director-General Dr Tedros Adhanom Ghebreyesus, Cuba’s Foreign Affairs Minister Bruno Rodriguez Parrilla, World Trade Organisation Director-General Dr Ngozi Okonjo-Iweala, Belarusian Foreign Affairs Minister Maxim Ryzhenkov, Bahrain’s Foreign Affairs Minister Dr Abdullatif bin Rashid Al Zayani, Kazakhstan’s President Kassym-Jomart Tokayev and Saudi Arabia’s Foreign Affairs Minister Prince Faisal bin Farhan Al Saud.
The summit is expected to begin with a closed-door session for core BRICS members focusing on “Inclusive Global Governance and Strengthening Multilateralism.”
As part of the programme, participating leaders are expected to tour the Bharat Innovates Exhibition, take part in a joint tree-planting ceremony and attend a gala dinner hosted by Indian Prime Minister Narendra Modi.
Prime Minister Modi is also scheduled to hold several bilateral meetings with visiting leaders.
On Sunday, he will welcome leaders from BRICS partner countries and outreach invitees for a broader session themed “Resilience, Innovation, Cooperation and Sustainability: Shaping the Future for Inclusive Global Growth.”
The summit is expected to provide a platform for discussions on global governance, economic cooperation, multilateralism, sustainability and other pressing international issues.
