The XIII BRICS Summit that includes Brazil, Russia, India, China and South Africa will be held via videoconference under the Indian chairmanship and the Covid-19 pandemic and situation in Afghanistan are likely to be ‘hot topics’.
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As previously reported by the Kremlin press service, the leaders of the BRICS nations will evaluate the prospects of strategic partnership within the “five” members, including joint steps to combat the spread of coronavirus infection.
It is beleived that member states will also discuss international and regional agendas with an emphasis on the situation in Afghanistan. “The main agreements will be reflected in the final declaration,” the press service of the Russian leader said.
Indian Chairmanship at BRICS
Indian Foreign Ministry specified that the summit will be chaired by Prime Minister Narendra Modi. The theme of the event is “BRICS 15th Anniversary: Five-way Cooperation of Countries in the Interest of Ensuring Continuity, Strengthening Interaction and the Principle of Consensus.”
For the period of its chairmanship, India has identified several priority areas within the framework of the association including – fight against terrorism, the use of digital and technological tools to achieve sustainable development goals and the strengthening of humanitarian contacts, the Foreign Ministry said.
Previous Summit
The last meeting of the heads of state and government of the BRICS countries was held in November 2020. Due to the pandemic, the event was also held via videoconference. It was chaired by the Russian President.
The leaders had exchanged views on the state and prospects of five-sided cooperation, summed up the results of the Russian chairmanship in the organization, and considered topical issues on the international agenda.
As a result of the consultations, the Moscow Declaration was adopted. It reflects the consolidated approaches of the five states to the further development of the association, as well as the BRICS Economic Partnership Strategy for the period up to 2025 and the Anti-Terrorism Strategy.
BRICS
The acronym BRICS is derived from the names of countries (South Africa joined the organization in December 2010, before that it was called BRIC). The purpose of the association, created in 2006 at the initiative of Russia, was the development of comprehensive cooperation between the participating countries.
The organizer of the summit is the country that currently chairs the association. The nation ensures the coordination of all current activities.
In recent years, the order of the letters in the acronym has been observed in terms of chairmanship: Brazil in 2014, Russia in 2015, India in 2016, China in 2017, South Africa in 2018. In 2019, the organization was again chaired by Brazil and in 2020 – by Russia.
