Putin Lands in India for Key BRICS Summit on Global Power Shift

By Staff, Agencies

Russian President Vladimir Putin arrived in New Delhi ahead of an 11-member BRICS summit expected to focus heavily on the wars in West Asia and Ukraine, alongside mounting economic pressures.

Putin and Iranian President Masoud Pezeshkian were scheduled to meet Indian Prime Minister Narendra Modi, while Chinese President Xi Jinping was also expected to participate in the two-day summit.

Putin landed at Palam Air Force Station in Delhi, where he was welcomed by India’s Minister of State for External Affairs, Kirti Vardhan Singh, footage carried by Russia’s Ria Novosti news agency showed.

The gathering will mark Xi’s first trip to India since 2019 and is being viewed as the most significant development yet in a cautious improvement in relations between the two neighboring powers, six years after a deadly confrontation along their disputed Himalayan border.

Relations between the two nuclear-armed Asian countries have shown signs of improvement in recent months, with the gradual restoration of flights, visas and high-level diplomatic contacts.

But significant tensions remain. The disputed border, an expanding trade deficit and broader strategic competition continue to weigh on bilateral relations.

On Friday, posters showing a smiling Modi were displayed across Delhi as security forces were deployed heavily throughout the capital. Authorities also imposed extensive traffic restrictions in central parts of the city, while Delhi police called on residents to remain patient and cooperate with security measures.

Established in 2009, BRICS was created as a platform for major emerging economies seeking greater influence within international institutions largely dominated by Western powers.

The grouping has since grown to include Iran, Saudi Arabia and the United Arab Emirates, whose positions on the aggression launched by the US and "Israel" on Iran in February differ sharply.

Pezeshkian’s attendance will mark his first visit to India since becoming Iran’s president and is expected to place the wars in West Asia prominently on the summit’s agenda.