New Delhi, Jul 18(UNI) External Affairs Minister Dr S Jaishankar would be visiting Rio de Janeiro, Brazil from July 25-26, to participate in the stand-alone meeting of BRICS Foreign Ministers.
Briefing reporters, MEA spokesman Raveesh Kumar said here that last month BRICS leaders’ had a successful informal summit on the sidelines of G20 Summit in Osaka, Japan.
This would be Dr Jaishankar’s first engagement with the BRICS Foreign Ministers since assuming office, he said.

BRICS Foreign Ministers’ meet twice annually. One meeting is hosted by the BRICS chair as a stand-alone meeting, usually in the capital and the other meeting is held on the sidelines of the UNGA. In 2018, the then External Affairs Minister had participated in the stand-alone meeting hosted by South Africa in Pretoria in June 2018 and the customary BRICS Foreign Ministers meeting on the margins of UNGA in September 2018.

Dr Jaishankar is expected to discuss amongst other issues, the preparation for the 11th BRICS Summit of the leaders to be held in Brasilia in November 2019.

India attaches high importance to its engagement with BRICS and has continued to engage BRICS at the highest levels.
'We believe that BRICS has emerged as a valuable forum for consultation, coordination and cooperation on contemporary global issues of mutual interest and has helped promote mutual understanding,' Mr Kumar said.
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