Brazil’s Foreign Minister Mauro Vieira arrived in New Delhi on Thursday to attend the 18th BRICS Summit, scheduled to be held on September 12-13, the Ministry of External Affairs (MEA) said.
The MEA welcomed Vieira’s arrival in a post on X and highlighted the longstanding friendship and cooperation between India and Brazil.
“Warm welcome to the Minister of Foreign Affairs, Mr Mauro Vieira of Brazil, as he arrives to attend the 18th BRICS Summit in New Delhi. India and Brazil share a longstanding friendship and a strong commitment to advancing cooperation across the Global South,” the MEA said.
Vieira’s arrival comes as India steps up preparations to host the two-day BRICS Leaders’ Summit in the national capital.
Prime Minister Narendra Modi on Thursday shared a video on X showcasing Bharat Mandapam, the venue for the summit, decked up ahead of the arrival of world leaders and delegations.
The video, which showed preparations at the summit venue, concluded with the message, “India is gearing up for BRICS 2026.”
Sharing the video, PM Modi wrote, “All set for BRICS 2026!”
As the BRICS Chair for 2026, India will host the 18th BRICS Summit in New Delhi, bringing together leaders of BRICS member and partner countries as well as Outreach Invitees.
India’s BRICS chairship is guided by the theme “Building for Resilience, Innovation, Cooperation and Sustainability”, reflecting a people-centric approach rooted in the spirit of “Humanity First.”
BRICS currently comprises Brazil, China, Egypt, Ethiopia, India, Indonesia, Iran, Russia, Saudi Arabia, South Africa and the United Arab Emirates.
The grouping’s partner countries are Belarus, Cuba, Bolivia, Kazakhstan, Malaysia, Nigeria, Thailand, Uganda, Uzbekistan and Vietnam.
India is a founding member of BRICS and has previously held the chairship of the grouping in 2012, 2016 and 2021. It assumed its fourth BRICS chairship on January 1, 2026.
The year 2026 also marks 20 years since the establishment of BRICS, which began as the BRIC grouping of Brazil, Russia, India and China before South Africa joined in 2011 and the grouping subsequently expanded.
(IANS)
