NEW DELHI: In his first multilateral summit meeting since taking office May 26, Prime Minister Narendra Modi Sunday left to attend the five-nation BRICS summit in Brazil, where he will have his first interaction with leaders of China and Russia among others.
The Sixth BRICS Summit, being held in Fortaleza and capital Brasilia July 15-16, is expected to see finalisation of setting up of the long-discussed BRICS bank - a major initiative of the grouping that together represents 18 percent of the world trade.
The BRICS development bank and the Contingent Reserve Arrangement are seen as a counterweight to the Western-dominated financial organisations, the World Bank and the International Monetary Fund.
The bloc, comprising Brazil, Russia, India, China and South Africa, accounts for over 40 percent of the global population and has a combined GDP of $24 trillion.
The summit will be held July 15 in Fortaleza, one of the host cities for the 2014 FIFA World Cup and one of Brazil's largest cities.
Modi will hold bilateral meetings with Presidents Vladimir Putin of Russia, Xi Jinping of China, Dilma Rousseff of Brazil and Jacob Zuma of South Africa on the sidelines of the summit. He will also meet the heads of governments of 11 South American countries including Argentina, Bolivia and Venezuela who have been invited by President Rousseff to Brazil.
Modi is accompanied by Minister of State for Commerce and Industry Nirmala Sitharaman, National Security Advisor Ajit Doval and Foreign Secretary Sujatha Singh.