BRICS summit to begin today; Hormuz crisis takes centre stage ahead of summit

NEW DELHI: Prime Minister Narendra Modi has called for an end to the disruption in the Strait of Hormuz, which emerged amid the West Asian crisis, at the BRICS Business Forum held ahead of the BRICS summit.

Modi stressed the need to keep sea routes safe for global trade. Iranian President Masoud Pezeshkian said the pressure created by US and Israeli attacks had led to the disruption in the Strait of Hormuz. Russian President Vladimir Putin strongly criticised the US, saying its sanctions had reached a “dirty level”.

The developments have heightened interest in the BRICS summit declaration. The two-day summit will begin on Saturday and conclude on Sunday, when the declaration is expected to be issued.

Chinese President Xi Jinping, who is visiting India after a seven-year gap, is scheduled to hold a crucial meeting with Prime Minister Narendra Modi on Saturday evening. Xi is arriving with a delegation of around 400 members.

The significance of the summit has also grown as Iran, the UAE and Saudi Arabia are among the member countries, with the latter two facing attacks from Iran amid the West Asian crisis. Saudi Foreign Minister Prince Faisal bin Farhan Al Saud is scheduled to arrive today.

Putin said that despite US sanctions, Russia had managed to expand trade relations with friendly countries and achieve strong economic growth. He also claimed that the BRICS grouping had achieved greater economic growth than the US-led G7.

Modi meets Pezeshkian and Putin

The West Asian conflict also figured in Prime Minister Narendra Modi’s discussions with Russian President Vladimir Putin and Iranian President Masoud Pezeshkian. Modi raised the disruption in the Strait of Hormuz and the attacks on Indian ship crew members. During his meeting with Putin, Modi called for the Ukraine conflict to be resolved through peaceful means.

India-Russia target Rs 9.57 lakh crore trade by 2030

• India and Russia have agreed to target bilateral trade worth Rs 9.57 lakh crore by 2030 during talks between Prime Minister Narendra Modi and President Vladimir Putin. The two countries will work to increase the presence of Indian products in the Russian market and expand cooperation in civil nuclear energy. They will also step up cooperation in the critical minerals sector.
• Modi will visit Russia for the annual summit. This will be the second meeting between the two leaders in two weeks. They had met on August 31 on the sidelines of the Shanghai Cooperation Organisation summit in Bishkek, Kyrgyzstan.