BRICS Summit: PM Modi holds 15 bilateral meetings over 3 days
New Delhi: Prime Minister Narendra Modi held 15 bilateral meetings with visiting heads of state and government over three days as the 18th BRICS Summit, hosted by India at Bharat Mandapam in New Delhi, concluded on Sunday.
Besides attending and addressing the summit sessions, Modi held the bilateral meetings with leaders from Friday afternoon until late Sunday afternoon. He also held several pull-aside meetings with world leaders and heads of international institutions participating in the BRICS sessions and the Outreach/BRICS Plus Dialogue.
Modi began his diplomatic engagements on Friday afternoon with a meeting with Russian President Vladimir Putin at Bharat Mandapam. He later held separate meetings with Iranian President Masoud Pezeshkian and United Nations Secretary-General Antonio Guterres the same evening.
On Saturday, Modi began the day with a bilateral meeting with Ethiopian Prime Minister Abiy Ahmed Ali at Hyderabad House. This was followed by meetings with Malaysian Prime Minister Anwar Ibrahim, Abu Dhabi Crown Prince Sheikh Khaled bin Mohamed bin Zayed Al Nahyan and Vietnamese Prime Minister Le Minh Hung.
Modi then welcomed BRICS leaders from member countries as they arrived at Bharat Mandapam for the summit. He addressed the closed session on "Inclusive Global Governance and Strengthening Multilateralism".
The Prime Minister also joined BRICS leaders at the "Bharat Innovates" exhibition, participated in the customary family photograph and took part in a joint tree plantation programme on the lawns of Bharat Mandapam.
One of Saturday's key bilateral engagements was Modi's meeting with Chinese President Xi Jinping. The day concluded with a gala dinner hosted by the Prime Minister for the visiting leaders at Bharat Mandapam.
On Sunday, Modi met leaders from BRICS partner countries and Outreach Invitees before participating in a family photo session. He then addressed the summit session titled "Resilience, Innovation, Cooperation and Sustainability: Shaping the Future for Inclusive Global Growth".
A series of bilateral meetings followed, with Modi meeting Kazakhstan Prime Minister Kassym-Jomart Tokayev, Philippines President Ferdinand R. Marcos Jr., Egyptian President Abdel Fattah El-Sisi, South African President Cyril Ramaphosa, Burundi President Evariste Ndayishimiye, Nigerian Vice-President Kashim Shettima and Ugandan Vice-President Jessica Alupo at Bharat Mandapam.
Between the bilateral meetings, Modi also held discussions with participating leaders and heads of several international institutions attending various BRICS meetings.
With IANS inputs