Leaders begin arriving in the Russian city of Kazan for the BRICS summit. They will be received in the coming hours by President Vladimir Putin.
The Chinese president Xi Jinpingthe Indian Prime Minister Narendra Modi and the South African president Cyril Ramaphosa were greeted by an honor guard and platters of desserts and other Russian foods upon their arrival at the airport.
The only notable absentee from this summit was Brazilian President Lula da Silva, who canceled his participation following an injury at home. He will still be present by video link.
BRICS countries of origin (Brazil, Russia, India China and South Africa) were joined by theIran, Egypt, Ethiopia, United Arab Emirates and Saudi Arabialast January.
Note that the Secretary General of the United Nations, António Guterres, is also expected to attend the summit, and meet the Russian president, a first since 2022, if confirmed. The decision was criticized by the Ukrainian Foreign Ministry.
A timely summit for Russia
The summit is a major event for Russia, as 32 countries have confirmed their participation and more than 20 heads of state will attend.
The issue is whether BRICS can become a structured organization capable of competing with the G7 or the G20. Moscow also wants a payment system specific to BRICS to circumvent Swift(from which Russia was excluded after its invasion of Ukraine), and dreams of a single currency to free ourselves from the dollar.
The summit therefore represents a golden opportunity for Vladimir Putin, more broadly, to close ranks among his allies, and more personally, to defy the predictions which saw the war in Ukraine and the arrest warrant issued by the International Criminal Court, transforming him into a pariah.