India Prepares for Xi, Putin Visits for September BRICS Summit
India is making preparations for visits by Chinese President Xi Jinping and Russian President Vladimir Putin, who are expected to attend the BRICS summit scheduled for September 12 and 13 in Delhi, sources confirmed on Wednesday (July 29, 2026). Consultations are ongoing for these high-level visits.
Foreign Secretary Vikram Misri held a series of talks in Beijing on Monday and Tuesday (July 27–28) to discuss strengthening high-level interactions. Chinese officials have also visited India in recent weeks to oversee arrangements and security preparations for a possible visit by President Xi.
During Mr Misri's meetings with Sun Haiyan, Vice Minister of the Communist Party of China's International Department, both sides expressed commitment to follow through on common understandings reached by leaders, strengthen high-level interactions, manage differences, and work towards improving bilateral relations, according to a Chinese readout. The Ministry of External Affairs said the discussions focused on deepening implementation of leader-level guidance, addressing priority issues, and promoting political, people-to-people, academic, and think-tank exchanges.
The preparations for Xi's visit reflect heightened attention, as he did not attend the previous BRICS summit in Brazil, sending Premier Li Qiang instead. Xi attended summits in 2023 (South Africa) and 2024 (Russia), where his talks with Prime Minister Narendra Modi led to a gradual normalisation of ties.
Mr Misri's meetings in Beijing covered a broader range of topics than recent visits, which were narrowly focused on border issues along the Line of Actual Control. He met with Vice Foreign Minister Hua Chunying, National Academy of Governance Vice President Li Wentang, and Hong Liang, Deputy Secretary General of the Chinese People's Political Consultative Conference (CPPCC), which handles people-to-people exchanges.
Russian President Putin's attendance was earlier indicated by Foreign Minister Sergey Lavrov during his May visit to Delhi for the BRICS foreign ministers' meeting, where he discussed high-level contacts with External Affairs Minister S. Jaishankar. India has intensified bilateral and multilateral engagements with BRICS members. Official sources expect top leaders to attend, with final details confirmed closer to the summit. A recent pre-summit meeting was the BRICS Disaster Management Ministers' Meeting in Delhi, attended by Russian EMERCOM Minister Aleksander Kurenkov.
Russia has supported India's BRICS chairmanship, and China reiterated its support during Mr Misri's visit. Both countries noted overlapping international agenda positions during bilateral talks and the BRICS ministerial meeting.
