New Delhi, 21 August : Foreign Secretary Vinay Mohan Kwatra said today that India will take a positive and open view on the expansion of BRICS, a group of five emerging economies in the world. At present, discussions are going on in BRICS regarding the outline, form, and objective of expansion. He said that many countries want to be a part of the BRICS expansion.
Prime Minister Narendra Modi will be visiting Johannesburg (South Africa) on a two-day (August 22–24) visit to attend the 15th BRICS Summit. This will be the first time since 2019 that the BRICS leaders will personally attend the summit. After this, on August 25, the Prime Minister will make an official visit to Greece. Foreign Secretary Vinay Mohan Kwatra informed us about the nature of the visit in a special press conference today.
He informed me that the summit will provide an opportunity to review the progress of the initiatives taken by BRICS and identify new areas for future activities. The BRICS alliance is based on mutual cooperation. This includes financial support. The form of economic cooperation is the subject of experts, and they are discussing it.
It is noteworthy that, apart from India, the BRICS includes China, South Africa, Russia, and Brazil. Chinese President Xi Jinping will attend the meeting. The President of Russia will attend the conference virtually, and Foreign Minister Sergei Lavrov will attend in his place.
On the subject of bilateral meetings during the BRICS summit, Kwatra said that many leaders are invited to the summit. In such a situation, discussions are still going on regarding the bilateral meetings of the Prime Minister. As soon as there is an update about this, he will inform the media. On the subject of trade in a single currency for BRICS countries, Kwatra said that currently the idea is to trade in the countries’ own currency.
The Prime Minister will also participate in the BRICS-Africa Outreach and BRICS Plus Dialogue, a special event to be held after the BRICS Summit. It will also include other countries invited by South Africa. During his visit, the Prime Minister will hold bilateral meetings with some of the leaders present in Johannesburg.
After his visit to South Africa, the Prime Minister will make an official visit to Greece on August 25. This will be the first visit to Greece by an Indian Prime Minister in 40 years. Prime Minister Modi will discuss with Prime Minister Mitsotakis ways to further strengthen relations between the two countries.
