Russian President Vladimir Putin is set to host the 2024 Brazil, Russia, India, China and South Africa (BRICS) Summit in Kazan, welcoming delegations from 36 countries and six international organisations on Tuesday.
This event, which has been described by the Kremlin as the "largest-scale foreign policy events ever" in Russia, marks a significant moment for the BRICS group which emphasises collaboration among emerging economies.
BRICS originally included Brazil, Russia, India and China but later, it expanded to include South Africa, Egypt, Ethiopia, Iran, and the United Arab Emirates. Saudi Arabia has yet to formally join.
Putin told reporters from BRICS nations that "BRICS does not put itself into opposition to anyone", and that the shift in the drivers of global growth was simply a fact.
"This is an association of states that work together based on common values, a common vision of development and, most importantly, the principle of taking into account each other's interests," he said.
The BRICS's share of global gross domestic product is forecast to rise to 37% by the end of this decade while the share accounted for by the Group of Seven major Western economies will decline to about 28% from 30% this year, according to data from the International Monetary Fund.
Russia is seeking to convince BRICS countries to build an alternative platform for international payments that would be immune to Western sanctions.
But divisions abound inside BRICS.
China and India, the top purchasers of Russian oil, have difficult relations, while there is little love lost between Arab nations and Iran.
Putin will meet with Indian Prime Minister Narendra Modi and Chinese President Xi Jinping on Tuesday and with Iranian President Masoud Pezeshkian and Turkish President Tayyip Erdogan on Wednesday.
According to Kremlin foreign policy aide Yuri Ushakov, the three-day summit will conclude with Putin holding a news conference on Thursday.
However, Brazilian President Luiz Inacio Lula da Silva cancelled his trip following medical advice to temporarily avoid long-haul flights after a head injury at home that caused a minor brain hemorrhage.
The BRICS summit comes as global finance chiefs gather in Washington amid war in the Middle East and Ukraine, a flagging Chinese economy and worries that the US presidential election could ignite new trade battles.
Putin, who ordered troops into Ukraine in 2022, was peppered with questions by BRICS reporters about the prospects for a ceasefire in Ukraine.
His answer was, in short, that Moscow would not trade away the four regions of eastern Ukraine that it says are now part of Russia, even though parts of them remain outside its control, and that it wanted its long-term security interests taken into account in Europe.
Two Russian sources said that, while there was increasing talk in Moscow of a possible ceasefire agreement, there was nothing concrete yet - and that the world was awaiting the result of the November 5 presidential election in the US.
Additionally, on the eve of the BRICS summit, Putin met with UAE President Sheikh Mohammed bin Zayed Al Nahyan for informal talks that went on until midnight at his Novo-Ogaryovo residence outside Moscow.
Putin praised both Sheikh Mohammed and Saudi Crown Prince Mohammed bin Salman, who will not attend the summit in Kazan, for their mediation efforts over Ukraine.
"I assure you that we will continue to work in this direction," Sheikh Mohammed told Putin. "We are ready to make any efforts to resolve crises and in the interests of peace, in the interests of both sides."
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