Beijing:
Chinese foreign minister Wang Yi will participate in the virtual meeting of the foreign ministers of the five-nation BRICS grouping on Friday, a senior official announced here on Thursday. Announcing Wang’s participation in the meeting of the foreign ministers of Brazil, Russia, India, China and South Africa, foreign ministry spokesperson Hua Chunying told a media briefing that the Chinese foreign minister would attend the online meeting hosted by Russian foreign minister Sergei Lavrov.
Hua said the meeting of the BRICS foreign ministers will focus on the international situation and BRICS cooperation. The online meeting of the five foreign ministers will take place in the backdrop of unsuccessful attempts by China to change the status quo in the eastern Ladakh region.
On Monday, the Indian Army said the Chinese military carried out “provocative military movements” to “unilaterally” change the status quo on the southern bank of Pangong lake on the intervening night of August 29 and 30 but the attempt was thwarted by the Indian troops.
The Russian Foriegn Ministry announced on August 27 that the foreign ministers of the BRICS bloc will hold a virtual meeting on September 4 during which they will focus on topical international issues and discuss cooperation between the five countries. The BRICS is the acronym coined for an association of five major emerging national economies – Brazil, Russia, India, China, and South Africa.
The meeting, to be hosted by Russia, was scheduled to be held earlier but had to be postponed due to the coronavirus pandemic.
