Brics An 'Influential Voice' In International Discourse, Says PM Modi

Describing Brics as "an influential voice" in international discourse, Prime Minister Narendra Modi on Sunday (04 September) said it was the grouping's shared responsibility to shape the global agenda and help developing nations achieve their objectives.

Leading from the chair, Modi addressed the Brics Leaders Meeting in Hangzhou (China), before the 8th annual Summit in Goa from October 15-16.

"We, as Brics, are an influential voice in international discourse. It is, therefore, our shared responsibility to shape the international agenda," he said in this picturesque eastern Chinese city.

"Our shared responsibility to shape international agenda in manner that helps developing nations achieve their objectives," he added.

Brics brings together five major emerging economies, comprising 43 per cent of the world population, having 37 per cent of the world GDP and 17 per cent share in the world trade.

Modi said that as chair of Brics, "'Building Responsive, Inclusive and Collective Solutions' is the theme we have chosen which mirrors central priorities at G20 Summit".

"We've taken Brics out of capitals to involve people from all walks of life. It will be an opportunity to deepen our ties and with BIMSTEC (Bay of Bengal Initiative for Multi- Sectoral Technical and Economic Cooperation) countries.

The four other leaders who participated in the meeting of the five-member bloc included Brazilian President Michel Temer, Chinese President Xi Jinping - with whom Modi held bilateral talks earlier, Russian President Vladimir Putin and South African President Jacob Zuma.

"Our summit next month would not only be an opportunity to deepen ties with ourselves, we will also interact with India's neighbouring countries of BIMSTEC - Nepal, Bhutan, Bangladesh, Sri Lanka, Myanmar and Thailand, who have been invited for the outreach summit. We welcome you all to Goa next month," Modi said while concluding his brief address.

As a formal grouping, Bric started after the meeting of the Leaders of Russia, India and China in St. Petersburg on the margins of G8 Outreach Summit in 2006.

The grouping was formalised during the 1st meeting of Bric Foreign Ministers on the sidelines of UN General Assembly in New York in 2006. The 1st Bric  Summit was held in Yekaterinburg, Russia, on June 16, 2009.

Bric was expanded into Brics with the inclusion of South Africa at the Bric Foreign Ministers' meeting in New York in September 2010. Accordingly, South Africa attended the 3rd Brics Summit in Sanya, China in April 2011.

(PTI)