BRICS Summit 2026 LIVE: Modi-Xi Meeting, Putin In Delhi As Iran War Tests BRICS Unity

"It is a privilege to have the business and government leaders from across the BRICS with us today. India's BRICS Chairmanship under the guidance of Prime Minister Narendra Modi has been built around four priorities: resilience, innovation, cooperation and sustainability. These are important priorities for the government, but they are equally relevant for business," he said.

BRICS Summit 2026 commences with BRICS Business Forum; EAM Dr S Jaishankar, Union Minister Piyush Goyal and Commerce Secretary Rajesh Agrawal among the speakers

South African President Cyril Ramaphosa arrives in India to attend the 18th BRICS Summit. He is received by Union MoS Jayant Singh South Africa holds Member Country status in BRICS

BJP MLA Ram Kadam criticised P Chidarambam's remarks on the BRICS summit.

"In opposing the BJP, they seem to be criticising India itself, which is why they fail to recognise India’s achievements at BRICS. Today, countries around the world recognise India as a global leader and look towards it as a source of hope and a potential mediator amid conflicts and global challenges," he said.

The MEA spokesperson extended a welcome to Zou Jiayi, President of the Asian Infrastructure Investment Bank (AIIB) for the BRICS summit.

The visit will strengthen partnerships to advance sustainable development and expand opportunities for emerging economies, he said in his X post.

The national capital has been decked up with colourful posters and banners for the 18th BRICS Summit. Visuals from Teen Murti and South Avenue The BRICS Summit will be hosted at Bharat Mandapam from 12th to 13th September 2026, bringing world leaders together for two days of high-level dialogue and cooperation. 11 member countries and 10 partner countries are going to participate in this summit.

Secretary of Foreign Affairs of the Philippines, Ma. Theresa P. Lazaro arrives in Delhi to attend the BRICS Summit 2026

PM Modi through his X handle shared a message about the upcoming BRICS summit saying that the conference "will feature positive and meaningful discussions on various issues, with aspirations for global welfare."

Congress leader and former External Affairs Minister, Salman Khurshid said that the relationship between Russia and India cannot be reduced to buying low cost fuel.

"Russia has been a time-tested friend. We can't just reduce it to low-cost fuel that we buy from them. We are now supplying petrol back to them because they are in need of petrol, etc... Even our European partners know this... when they decide how to approach India about this whole issue of the European conflict... we feel that there is much more that India could have done, and India has received the right response from Russia and Ukraine about putting an end to this conflict as well as in the West Asian conflict," he said.

Delhi Police has deployed a multi-layered security plan involving around 15,000 personnel and 200 companies of paramilitary forces for the BRICS Summit.

Delhi is on high alert with tight security and temporary traffic curbs as India hosts top world leaders for the BRICS Summit at the Bharat Mandapam over the weekend.

Vasudev Ravi, OSD, PR, Ministry of External Affairs (MEA) told ANI that a large number of journalists from both India and other BRICS countries are expected to be present at Bharat Mandapam.

"As with any Summit, we are organising an International Media Centre within the Bharat Mandapam Complex. We expect somewhere between 1200-1300 journalists to be there in a ratio of about 50:50. We expect a large number of journalists from member countries of BRICS and partner & invitee countries to join as well at the International Media Centre. Our challenge remains to disseminate information to the best of our abilities," he said.

President Putin arrived in the national capital tonight for the BRICS Summit 2026. During his visit, he will also hold talks with PM Narendra Modi and have a series of bilateral meetings.