BRICS Summit: Radical changes are underway in multipolar world

Russian President Vladimir Putin announced radical changes in the multipolar world, saying that the BRICS countries are actually showing their responsibility for the situation in the world.

This came during the opening speech at the 16th BRICS Summit in Kazan, where he continued that Russia, as the group’s president for the current year, seeks to strengthen BRICS’s authority in the world and to focus on solving global and local problems.

Putin said that the countries participating in the summit demonstrate their responsibility for the situation in the world today, “not in words, but in deeds,” and continued: “All our countries stand for equality, good neighborliness and mutual respect, and affirm the ideals of friendship and understanding, for the prosperity and well-being of the world, not in words, but in deeds, as these countries demonstrate their responsibility for the future of the world, and contribute significantly to solving pressing regional problems”.

The BRICS leaders began their communication yesterday, when an informal luncheon was held in Kazan City Hall with the participation of the heads of the summit delegations.

Regarding the expansion of the BRICS group, Putin said that “ignoring the unprecedented interest of the countries of the South and East of the world in partnership and communication with BRICS would be a mistake, as more than 30 countries have already expressed this desire in one form or another, which is necessary given the effectiveness of the group and maintaining its balance”.

Putin pointed to the strengthening of BRICS’ authority and influence on the world stage, saying that the association “is developing dynamically, strengthening its authority and influence in world affairs”.

The Russian President, who chairs BRICS this year, proposed considering the most relevant aspects of the global agenda, and exchanging views on the issue of cooperation between BRICS countries in the international arena, including resolving acute regional conflicts.

According to him, it’s planned to discuss the implementation of two important decisions of the previous summit in Johannesburg: deepening financial cooperation within the BRICS framework and further expanding the association.

Putin identified three main areas of cooperation among BRICS countries: politics and security, economy and finance, and cultural and humanitarian contacts.

He pointed to the efforts being made to ensure smooth and full integration of new participating countries into the work of the association.

The 16th BRICS Summit has started in Russian city of Kazan, the capital of the federal Republic of Tatarstan, and will continue until October 24.

The summit attended by Russian President Vladimir Putin, Chinese President Xi Jinping, Indian Prime Minister Narendra Modi, South African President Cyril Ramaphosa, Egyptian President Abdel Fattah al Sisi, Iranian President Masoud Peskov, UAE President Mohammed bin Zayed Al Nahyan, and Ethiopian Prime Minister Abiy Ahmed.

As for the Brazilian and Saudi delegations will be headed by Foreign Ministers Maruro Luiz Iker Vieira and Faisal bin Farhan Al Saud.

The summit will focus on strengthening multilateralism for fair global development and security.

On October 23, during narrow and broad meetings, the leaders will discuss current issues on the international and regional agenda, and the results of joint work within the framework of the BRICS strategic partnership in the political, economic, cultural and humanitarian fields.

The summit will pay special attention to the issues of expanding mutual settlements in national currencies and creating a new category of partner countries in BRICS.

During the expanded meeting, reports will be heard on the results of the work in 2024 of traditional BRICS mechanisms, including the Business Council, the Interbank Cooperation Mechanism and the Alliance of Businesswomen in the Association.

The President of the New Development Bank, Dilma Rousseff, is also scheduled to speak, summarizing the Bank’s activities and outlining its future plans.

The final agreements of the summit will be recorded in the Kazan Declaration, a document that will reflect the unified approach of the BRICS member states on a number of pressing international and regional issues and on the further development of BRICS.

On October 24, a meeting in the BRICS+ and Outreach format will be held to engage with nearly 40 leaders of countries representing the Global South and heads of multilateral organizations.

Current international issues, with a focus on the situation in the Middle East, as well as the interaction between BRICS countries and the Global South in the interests of sustainable development, will be discussed.