India Welcomes New BRICS Members at Key Meeting in Russia
Moscow: On Monday, India warmly welcomed the inclusion of Egypt, Iran, the UAE, Saudi Arabia, and Ethiopia into the BRICS group, as their representatives attended a pivotal meeting hosted by Russia for the first time.
Senior diplomat Dammu Ravi led the Indian delegation at the BRICS Foreign Ministers’ Meeting held in Nizhny Novgorod, located in western Russia.
In a statement posted on X, Ministry of External Affairs spokesperson Randhir Jaiswal remarked, “A significant meeting in the format of an expanded BRICS family. India wholeheartedly welcomes the new membership.”
This meeting marked the first ministerial gathering since the BRICS expansion in 2023, which saw Egypt, Ethiopia, Iran, Saudi Arabia, and the UAE join Brazil, Russia, India, China, and South Africa as full-fledged members.
Dammu Ravi, Secretary (Economic Relations) in the Ministry of External Affairs, led the Indian delegation at the BRICS Foreign Ministers’ Meeting in Nizhny Novgorod.
Typically, the External Affairs Minister attends such meetings. However, S. Jaishankar, having been reappointed as External Affairs Minister on Monday following Prime Minister Narendra Modi’s swearing-in ceremony on Sunday, was unable to attend.
Russia assumed the year-long chairmanship of BRICS on January 1, 2024.
According to Russia’s official TASS news agency, Russia’s presidency includes more than 250 various events, with the BRICS summit in Kazan in October 2024 being the central event.
