New Delhi, Sep 12 (IANS) Director-General of the World Health Organisation (WHO), Tedros Adhanom Ghebreyesus, arrived in New Delhi on Saturday to attend the 18th BRICS Summit.
Extending a warm welcome to Ghebreyesus, the Ministry of External Affairs (MEA) took to X and posted: “The visit underscores the importance of global cooperation in health-related matters for shared progress and prosperity.”
Meanwhile, Belarus’ Foreign Minister Maxim Ryzhenkov also arrived in the national capital to participate in the BRICS Summit.
Welcoming Ryzhenkov, the MEA said: “India and Belarus share warm and friendly relations, marked by growing cooperation across a broad range of areas, in bilateral and multilateral spheres.”
India will host the 18th BRICS Summit at Bharat Mandapam in New Delhi on Saturday and Sunday (September 12-13), bringing together leaders from BRICS member and partner countries, along with outreach invitees.
India's BRICS Chairship is guided by the theme: “Building for Resilience, Innovation, Cooperation and Sustainability”, reflecting Prime Minister Narendra Modi's vision of a people-centric approach rooted in the spirit of "Humanity First," according to the statement released by the Ministry of External Affairs (MEA).
On Friday, Philippines President Ferdinand R. Marcos Jr. arrived in New Delhi to attend the 18th BRICS Summit in his capacity as the current chair of ASEAN. He was warmly received at the airport by Union Minister of State (MoS) Anupriya Patel
According to the MEA, as an important pillar of India’s ‘Act East’ policy, India and ASEAN maintain a Comprehensive Strategic Partnership focused on trade, maritime security and regional connectivity in the Indo-Pacific.
Several other world leaders, including Director-General of the World Trade Organisation Ngozi Okonjo-Iweala and Cuban Foreign Minister Bruno Rodriguez Parrilla, also arrived in New Delhi on Friday to attend the summit.
Welcoming Ngozi Okonjo-Iweala, the MEA said, “Her participation in the Summit will advance the dialogue on inclusive trade and development, and on ensuring that the global trading system delivers for all.”
Following the arrival of the Cuban Foreign Minister, the MEA took to X and posted, “Warm welcome to Minister of Foreign Affairs Bruno Rodriguez Parrilla of Cuba on his arrival in New Delhi for the 18th BRICS Summit. India and Cuba share warm and friendly ties. As partners in the Global South, we are working together to advance shared priorities.”
Under India's Chairship this year, more than 350 meetings and high-level engagements have been held in over 25 cities across India to further strengthen the BRICS strategic partnership across three fundamental pillars: political and security, economic and financial, and cultural and people-to-people exchanges.
Through these meetings and business-to-business and people-to-people initiatives, India's BRICS Chairship has advanced BRICS cooperation through practical, development-oriented outcomes.
--IANS
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