Watch | India's PM Modi engages in brief interaction with China's Xi Jinping at BRICS Summit

Indian Prime Minister Narendra Modi was seen engaging in a brief conversation with Chinese President Xi Jinping at the BRICS Summit in Johannesburg on Thursday (August 24). 

In the video posted by news agency ANI, the Indian prime minister is seen walking a little ahead of the Chinese president and slowly speaking to him as the two leaders are headed for the media briefing by BRICS leaders.

PM Modi and Jinping attended the plenary session together on Wednesday but stood apart in the photograph session.

Last November, the prime minister shook hands with the Chinese president and briefly interacted with him at the formal dinner for G20 leaders in Bali which marked their first face-to-face meeting in public after the military standoff in Ladakh in 2020.

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The relations between the two nations have been strained since the armies of India and China clashed in the Galwan Valley in June 2020. In order to resolve the situation, both countries have till now held 19 rounds of military-level talks. 

Prime Minister Modi, earlier in the day, welcomed the expansion of BRICS with which other nations were added to the group — Argentina, Egypt, Ethiopia, Iran, Saudi Arabia and the United Arab Emirates (UAE). 

“India has always supported the expansion of BRICS. India has always believed that adding new members will strengthen BRICS as an organisation,” said Modi, while speaking at a press briefing of BRICS leaders. 

On the second day, at the open plenary session of the BRICS Summit 2022, the prime minister said that India, under its G20 presidency, gave a lot of importance to the countries of the Global South and appreciated South Africa for chairing the BRICS summit.

"We welcome the move to give special importance to the countries of the Global South in BRICS under the chairmanship of South Africa. This is not just the aspiration, but also the need of the present times. India has also given importance to this subject under its G20 presidency. One Earth One Family One Future — we are trying to move forward with all countries on this mantra. In the Voice of Global South summit in January this year, 125 countries participated and shared their concerns and priorities," he stated. 

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