Story: Russia, on Wednesday (April 28, 2026), announced that its Foreign Minister Sergei Lavrov will visit India and attend the BRICS Foreign Ministers’ Meeting in New Delhi in May 2026.
In a media briefing in Moscow, Russian Foreign Ministry spokesperson Maria Zakharova said Lavrov would also meet with India’s External Affairs Minister Dr. S. Jaishankar during his New Delhi visit to discuss bilateral ties.
The Lavrov-Jaishankar discussions would include the schedule of contacts, especially the preparation for the meetings of the Inter-Governmental Russian Indian Commission on Trade, Economic, Scientific, Technical, and Cultural Cooperation, apart from other issues of mutual interest.
“On the 14th and 15th of May, the Foreign Minister of the Russian Federation, Sergei Lavrov, will participate in a full-fledged session or council of the foreign ministries of BRICS countries in New Delhi,” Zakharova said.
“This session under the Indian presidency will become a good opportunity for detailed and profound discussion of relevant issues of international agenda, prospects for improving the system of global governance, focusing on increasing the role of the states of the world majority, special attention will be given to further steps to develop strategic partnership in the context of preparing the 18th BRICS summit that will take place in New Delhi in September this year and the participation of the foreign ministers of partner states of BRICS will be possible some of the sessions,” Zakharova said.
“During the stay of Lavrov in New Delhi to participate in the Council of Foreign Ministers of BRICS, he’s going to have a full-fledged bilateral visit, including negotiations with the Foreign Minister of India. They’re going to speak about the whole range of bilateral relations, as well as the schedule of contacts and the highest high-end working level,” she said.
“Special attention will be given to the preparation of meetings of the Intergovernmental Russian-Indian Commission on Trade, Economic, Scientific, Technical, and Cultural Cooperation. And of course, they will consider the issue of the whole range of agenda of mutual interest, and they will speak about the contacts and the preparation for the contacts on the highest and higher level,” she added.
In March 2026, Jaishankar held a telephonic conversation with Lavrov, where both ministers discussed the West Asia conflict and expanding bilateral ties.
“A good telecon with Foreign Minister Sergei Lavrov of Russia. Shared our assessments on the West Asia conflict and related diplomatic efforts. Also took stock of our bilateral cooperation agenda,” EAM Jaishankar had posted on X after the phone call.
India holds the BRICS chair in 2026, guided by the theme of ‘Building for Resilience, Innovation, Cooperation and Sustainability’, reflecting a people-centric and humanity-first approach articulated by Prime Minister Narendra Modi at the 17th BRICS Summit held in Rio de Janeiro in 2025.
BRIC was formalised at the first meeting of BRIC Foreign Ministers on the sidelines of the United Nations General Assembly (UNGA) in New York in 2006.
The inaugural BRIC Summit was convened in Russia’s Yekaterinburg in 2009. It was agreed to expand BRIC into BRICS with the inclusion of South Africa at the BRIC Foreign Ministers’ meeting in New York in 2010. South Africa attended the third BRICS Summit in 2011.