The issue of BRICS expansion will be on table during the Indian foreign minister’s visit to Russia, with Pakistan seeking Moscow’s support to become a member of the grouping in 2024.
External Affairs Minister S Jaishankar is set to visit Russia next week for a meeting with his counterpart Sergey Lavrov in Moscow. He will hold wide-ranging discussions on bilateral and regional issues, taking stock of the security issues in the region and other global challenges. The BRICS expansion and other strategic issues will be on the table during Jaishankar’s visit to Moscow. The key agenda during the Indian foreign minister Jaishankar’s meeting with his Russian counterpart will be to strengthen and bolster the India-Russia special and strategic partnership, sources aware of the meetings ahead of this visit told The Daily Guardian.
According to sources, Jaishankar will also be discussing with the Russian counterpart the security challenges in the Indian Ocean Region (IOR) due to certain factors. The visit is expected to commence on December 25 and will extend through the Christmas period. However a final decision on dates is yet to be taken, sources said. “It will be a diplomatic mission by Jaishankar aimed at bolstering India-Russia strategic ties,” said sources. The last visit of EAM Jaishankar was in November 2022. The matters related to trade, energy, defence, strategic issues, etc. will figure prominently, said sources. Jaishankar’s visit assumes greater significance as India and Russia will not hold their annual leaders’ summit this year. The last summit was held in New Delhi in December 2021, and Russian President Vladimir Putin’s travels have been curtailed since the start of the invasion of Ukraine in February 2022.
The issue of expansion of Brazil-Russia-India-China-South Africa (BRICS) will also figure prominently during Jaishankar’s conversations with Lavrov, sources said. The discussion on BRICS expansion will be important in the light of the fact that Pakistan has submitted a request to become a member of the grouping in 2024, and it has sought Russia’s support for the same. Jaishankar will also share his perspective on terrorism emanating from Pakistan-Afghanistan (AfPak) region. The Indian foreign minister will expect the Russian side to issue a statement against terrorism from this region in what will be a message for Pakistan. Indian and Russian foreign ministers will voice concern over growing terror activities from Afghanistan.
Another significant development that India has been closely monitoring over the past few weeks is that Russia has recently increased activities in the Indian Ocean.
