In response to a question about whether Prime Minister Narendra Modi will attend the BRICS Summit, official spokesperson Arindam Bagchi made the comments.

Arindam Bagchi said, “I have nothing particular to share on this issue at the moment as high level visits are always announced at the appropriate time and as soon as we have something that we can share with you we will do that,” in response to a question from the press on Thursday.

Yes, there is a BRICS summit right now, he continued, and “we will let you know the modalities of India’s participation, you know Prime Minister’s acceptance of the same.”

The 15th BRICS Summit will take place in South Africa from August 22–24 at the Sandton Convention Centre in Sandton, Johannesburg. According to the BRICS official statement, the BRICS are a group of important emerging markets and developing nations, specifically Brazil, Russia, India, China, and South Africa.

On January 1, 2023, South Africa assumed the role of BRICS Chair with the slogan “BRICS and Africa: Partnership for Mutually Accelerated Growth, Sustainable Development, and Inclusive Multilateralism”.

The theme guides the Chair’s five goals for 2023, which include: Creating a partnership for a just transition that is equitable; Modernising education and skill-building for the future; Developing the African Continental Free Trade Area; advancing the 2030 Agenda for Sustainable Development; strengthening multilateralism, including working to reform global governance institutions; and enhancing the meaningful participation of women in peace processes, according to the official statement.

Notably, Russia hosted the inaugural BRICS summit in 2009. South Africa was invited to join BRICS after the organization’s founding in 2010. Notably, the theme of the 14th BRICS Summit, “Foster High-quality BRICS Partnership, Usher in a New Era for Global Development,” was virtually held in June 2022.