Building Brics: PM Modi-Putin talks, a Thirukkural gift and Xi's big return - key points

With the 18th Brics Summit under way in New Delhi, key developments have already emerged from the high-level engagements. Prime Minister Narendra Modi held talks with Russian President Vladimir Putin, gifting him a Russian translation of the Thirukkural, while Iranian President Masoud Pezeshkian met PM Modi. Chinese President Xi Jinping is also due to arrive on Saturday for the summit and bilateral talks.India is hosting the September 12-13 summit under its 2026 chairship theme, “Building for Resilience, Innovation, Cooperation and Sustainability”. The expanded Brics grouping, which now has 11 members, is expected to focus on development, trade, technology, sustainability and strengthening cooperation among emerging economies and the Global South.PM Modi-Putin talks, Thirukkural gift & carpoolingPrime Minister Narendra Modi and Russian President Vladimir Putin held bilateral talks, with trade, industrial cooperation, civil nuclear energy and other areas of strategic partnership being prominent in the discussions ahead of the 18th Brics Summit.They reviewed progress in bilateral cooperation across political, economic, defence, energy, space, skill mobility and people-to-people ties. They welcomed Russia’s INNOPROM India exhibition, held for the first time in India, and stressed its role in expanding trade and industrial cooperation, according to an MEA statement.The leaders also visited the exhibition and interacted with participants.The two leaders also discussed India-Russia engagement in Brics under India’s 2026 chairship, along with key regional and global issues, including the conflicts in West Asia and the Black Sea region and their impact on maritime trade and the safety of Indian seafarers. PM Modi reiterated that dialogue and diplomacy were the way forward in resolving conflicts and said India was ready to assist in peace efforts."They also exchanged views on issues of mutual interest in the regional and global sphere, including conflicts in West Asia and the Black Sea region. PM reiterated that dialogue and diplomacy remains the way forward in resolving conflicts and India stands ready to assist in peace efforts," MEA said in a statement.Moreover, Putin invited PM Modi to visit Russia for the 24th India-Russia annual summit, and Modi accepted the invitation, the MEA said.During the meeting, PM Modi gifted Putin a Russian translation of the Thirukkural, the classical Tamil work attributed to poet-saint Thiruvalluvar. The 1,330 couplets deal with virtue, wealth and statecraft, and love. Modi said the translation would carry Thiruvalluvar’s “eternal wisdom” across languages and borders."Presented President Putin with a Russian translation of the Thirukkural, which carries the eternal wisdom of the great Thiruvalluvar across languages and borders," PM Modi said in a post on X.After the bilateral meeting, PM Modi and Putin shared a car as they travelled to an exhibition at Bharat Mandapam.PM Modi, Pezeshkian hold bilateral talksPM Modi and Iranian President Masoud Pezeshkian held a bilateral meeting on the sidelines of Brics Summit. The meeting followed their participation in the Brics Business Forum, where the two leaders, along with Russian President Putin and South African President Cyril Ramaphosa, discussed ways to deepen cooperation in trade, investment, innovation and global development.The talks came against the backdrop of Pezeshkian’s call at the forum for Brics countries to move from “potential cooperation to operational” cooperation. He said the grouping’s strength would be better realised by building stronger networks of trade, investment and joint financing among member countries.Pezeshkian also flagged geopolitical uncertainty, supply-chain disruptions and the increasing use of economic instruments as a means of political pressure.Iranian President Masoud Pezeshkian arrived in New Delhi for the 18th Brics Summit. The MEA said India and Iran, as Brics partners, are working towards “shared progress and prosperity”.Xi’s visit, PM Modi talks and Beijing’s message on managing differencesChinese President Xi Jinping will arrive in New Delhi on Saturday for the Brics Summit and a bilateral meeting with PM Modi, his first visit to India in nearly seven years. Beijing said the two countries should view ties from a strategic and long-term perspective, strengthen communication, enhance cooperation and properly handle their differences.The PM Modi-Xi meeting comes as India and China work to stabilise ties following the 2020 Eastern Ladakh standoff. The two sides have held talks on the boundary issue and agreed to advance discussions on an “Early and Substantial Harvest” of boundary delimitation and border management. Xi’s visit is expected to offer fresh indications of the future direction of bilateral relations.Get the latest India News and Live updates. Download the TOI app.