Prime Minister Manmohan Singh will address the Fifth BRICS Summit in Durban, South Africa, on Wednesday. He will also meet Chinese President Xi Jinping on the sidelines of the event and handover the Chairmanship of the BRICS grouping to the summit hosts during the plenary session this afternoon. During his speech, Dr. Singh is expected to call for equitable inclusive economic development and for fast tracking reforms for a more balanced global financial architecture. New Delhi also favours the BRICS nations (Brazil, Russia, India, China and South Africa) to speak in one voice on issues such as reforms of the United Nations Security Council.
Dr. Singh is also likely to urge BRICS nations to ensure policy coordination to revive the downturn in the global economy. Later in the evening, Dr. Singh will hold talks with the new Chinese President Xi Jinping on the sidelines of the BRICS Summit. This will be the first bilateral meeting between the two leaders after the change of leadership change in Beijing. On sidelines of the summit, Dr. Singh last evening also held cordial bilateral talks with Russian President Vladimir Putin, President of Brazil Dilma Rouseff and the South African President Jacob Zuma. The opening day of the summit saw the finalization of modalities for formation of permanent BRICS Business Council to facilitate trade with BRICS members and third countries. Dr. Singh”s meeting with President Xi Jinping is expected to provide an impetus to bilateral ties besides being a platform to take stock of things and go forward in the relationship.
————-ANI