Terrorism has caused $1 trillion loss to the world economy and the atmosphere it created has indirectly and deeply harmed trade and business, Prime Minister Narendra Modi said at the BRICS Summit in Brasilia as he welcomed increased cooperation from the members of the grouping. The 11th BRICS Summit was held under the theme: Economic Growth for an Innovative Future.
BRICS leaders - Brazilian President Jair Bolsonaro, Prime Minister Modi, Chinese President Xi Jinping, Russian President Vladimir Putin and South African President Cyril Ramaphosa - opened the 11th BRICS Summit where deliberations took place on key areas such as trade, investment and counter-terrorism. Brazil is the current chair of the grouping which represents over 3.6 billion people or half of the world population and they have a combined nominal GDP of USD 16.6 trillion.
Addressing the Plenary Session of the 11th BRICS Summit at the iconic Itamaraty Palace Prime Minister Modi said terrorism has emerged as the biggest threat to the development, peace and prosperity. He said that the scourge has caused USD 1 trillion loss to the world economy. In 10 years, terrorism has claimed the lives of about 225,000 people and destroyed societies, Modi said. Modi also proposed to hold the first meeting of BRICS water ministers in India. Modi also emphasised on paying special attention to mutual trade and investment, saying intra-BRICS trade accounts for just 15 per cent of the world trade, while its combined population is over 40 per cent of the world's population. Modi described India as the world’s most open and investment friendly economy in his address to the Brics forum. He also urged the Brics business leaders to invest in the country and take advantage of its “limitless” possibilities and “countless” opportunities.
On the sidelines of the 11th BRICS summit, Modi met Brazilian President to discuss ways to enhance the bilateral strategic partnership. The two leaders held "fruitful talks" to strengthen bilateral ties. The Brazilian President accepted Prime Minister Modi's invitation to be the chief guest at India's Republic Day celebrations next year and said that a large business delegation will accompany him to India. The two leaders also discussed other areas of cooperation including space and defence sectors. Modi also welcomed the decision of the President to grant visa-free travel to Indian citizens. The prime minister also held separate bilateral meetings with Russian President Vladimir Putin and Chinese President Xi Jinping.
During the meeting with the Chinese President, it was discussed that the Special Representatives will have another meeting on matters relating to the boundary question and reiterated the importance of maintaining peace and security in the border areas. This is significant as even after the informal summit, India and China have not yet succeeded in finalising dates for talks between the Special Representatives. They both agreed on the importance of maintaining close dialogue on matters relating to trade and investment, the government said in a press release.
