Unable to travel abroad, ‘Pariah Putin’ has Xi, Modi come to him

“For Russia to have 22 leaders and representatives of over 30 countries coming to Kazan 2½ years into this war does not only show that Putin is not isolated internationally and the ICC warrant is of limited utility, but also that the war in Ukraine has become a new normal, something accepted as a feature of international reality,” said Hanna Notte of the James Martin Centre for Nonproliferation Studies in California.

Known as BRICS – an acronym for Brazil, Russia, India, China and South Africa – the grouping expanded this year to include Egypt, Ethiopia, Iran and the United Arab Emirates. Together, the group represents almost half the world’s population and more than 35 per cent of global economic output, adjusted by purchasing power.

Still, Putin has not been able to escape the shadow of the war in Ukraine.

“We have been in constant touch over the conflict between Russia and Ukraine,” Modi told Putin after giving him a warm hug. “We believe that disputes should only be resolved peacefully. We totally support efforts to quickly restore peace and stability.”

Modi has navigated the two combatants in the war carefully. This is his second visit to Russia in three months, but he also travelled to Ukraine in August. India has helped prop up Russia’s economy by purchasing discounted oil from Russian companies that have been placed under sanctions by the United States and Europe.

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The day before the summit, India and China reached an agreement on patrolling their shared Himalayan border, potentially easing the icy hostility between the Asian giants after a deadly skirmish between their troops four years ago.

India’s Foreign Secretary Vikram Misri said the agreement had come after weeks of intense talks between diplomatic and military negotiators from both sides. The agreement, Misri said, was designed to lead to “disengagement and a resolution of the issues that had arisen in these areas in 2020”.

A Chinese Foreign Ministry spokesperson, Lin Jian, said “Now both sides have arrived at a resolution on the relevant matter, which China views favourably. Going forward, the Chinese side and Indian sides will implement those resolutions.”

Some countries, among them China, Russia and Iran, want to use BRICS to challenge the power of the United States, particularly its ability to wield economic sanctions. Others like India and Brazil are more interested in reforming global institutions like the World Bank and the International Monetary Fund to better serve the needs of the developing world.

The inclusion of more member states will likely make it more difficult for the group to reach consensus, diplomats and analysts say.

A key topic for the summit will be trying to build a global payments system similar to the global banking network known as SWIFT, which Russia was excluded from because of its invasion of Ukraine. Talks are also underway to add more countries to the group, including a new “partner” category that would require less involvement from interested states.

However, Notte said that much of the activity at the summit is “more show than substance”, asserting that it will have limited effect on Russia’s war effort.

“All these partners in BRICS, and its associates, have thrown lifelines to Russia’s economy, support which has been meaningful and allowed Russia to prolong the war in Ukraine,” she said. “But it is not enough to put Russia into position to actually win the war.” She cited problems with manpower and ammunition.

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Kazan is the capital of Russia’s Tatarstan region, which is about 1200 kilometres from the front line with Ukraine. Despite the distance, the region has been subject to long-range Ukrainian drone attacks, including in April this year. Security in Kazan is particularly tight, with schools and universities closed and movement around the city limited.

This article originally appeared in The New York Times.