Sputnik comes to you live as Russia's Foreign Minister Sergey Lavrov opens the two-day meeting of the foreign ministers of the BRICS countries in Nizhny Novgorod.
The Foreign Ministers’ meeting is part of a series of events organized by Russia as part of its 2024 BRICS presidency agenda.
China’s Minister of Foreign Affairs Wang Yi, South Africa’s Minister of International Relations and Cooperation Dr Naledi Pandor, Egypt’s Minister of Foreign Affairs Sameh Shoukry, Brazil’s Minister of Foreign Affairs Mauro Vieira are among those attending. Turkiye's Foreign minister Hakan Fidan is to participate in the extended format of the gathering.
The meeting is the first after BRICS (Russia, China, India, Brazil, and South Africa) was joined by new members: Egypt, Ethiopia, Iran, Saudi Arabia and the United Arab Emirates. The meeting will also take place in the Outreach/BRICS plus format to boost engagement with countries of the Global South and East.
Participants plan to discuss “international relations, improvement of the global governance system with emphasis on strengthening the role of developing countries, conflict resolution, and interaction in leading multilateral platforms," said Russian Foreign Ministry spokeswoman Maria Zakharova. Further steps to develop the strategic partnership within the fold of BRICS will be considered, with attention paid to preparations for the 16th BRICS summit in Kazan.
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