The BRICS Ministers of Foreign Affairs /International Relations video conference was convened by the current BRICS Chair, Russia on 28 April 2020. Minister of Foreign Affairs of Russian Federation, Mr. Sergey Lavrov, chaired the meeting. EAM Dr. S. Jaishankar represented India.
This video conference was convened in the backdrop of the COVID-19 pandemic crisis. The discussions centred around COVID-19 crisis, its impact and BRICS response. The BRICS Foreign Ministers also discussed the activities to be undertaken under Russian BRICS Chairmanship in 2020.
EAM highlighted the initiatives and various decisive steps taken early by India in the wake of the pandemic including through Aarogya Setu Citizen App and Pradhan Mantri Garib Kalyan Package. He highlighted that much before the outbreak was declared a public health emergency of international concern by WHO, India instituted measures to check Corona Virus. He apprised the BRICS Foreign Ministers about the initiative to coordinate efforts to contain COVID-19 in South Asia, and creation of COVID-19 Emergency Response Fund by the SAARC countries.
India is providing pharma assistance to nearly 85 nations, including many countries in Africa, on a grant basis, to support their response to the pandemic. This has been widely welcomed. India also reaffirmed its strong support for Russian BRICS Chairship in 2020 and the overall theme of “BRICS Partnership for Global Stability, Shared Security and Innovative Growth”. A virtual meeting of BRICS Health Officials is envisaged on COVID-19 pandemic on 7th May, 2020 to take the discussion forward in a focussed and purposeful manner.