Focus on Afghanistan as PM Modi chairs BRICS summit on Thursday

This is the second time Prime Minister Modi will be chairing the BRICS summit

Prime Minister Narendra Modi will chair the annual summit of the five-nation grouping BRICS on Thursday in the virtual format and it is expected to focus extensively on the situation in Afghanistan.

The meeting will be attended by Russian President Vladimir Putin, Chinese President Xi Jinping, South African President Cyril Ramaphosa and Brazil's Jair Bolsonaro, according to the Ministry of External Affairs (MEA).

“As part of India's ongoing chairship of BRICS in 2021, Prime Minister Narendra Modi will chair the 13th BRICS Summit on September 9 in virtual format," the MEA said in a statement.

This is the second time Prime Minister Modi