New Delhi: China said it supports India in hosting this year’s BRICS meeting, the All India Radio (AIR) reported

This will be the third time India will host the BRICS Summit after 2012 and 2016. Chinese Foreign Ministry spokesperson Wang Wenbin told the media in Beijing on Monday that China will work with India and other members to strengthen communication and dialogue and consolidate cooperation and work for greater progress under BRICS.

He said, China attaches importance to the BRICS mechanism and is committed to deepening strategic partnership within it to consolidate solidarity and cooperation, the report said.

The report said BRICS is celebrating its 15th anniversary in 2021, but it will be the 13th BRICS Summit which India is chairing. Last week, EAM Dr. S. Jaishankar launched the website brics2021.gov.in for it.

The theme for India’s chairship is ‘BRICS @ 15: Intra-BRICS Cooperation for Continuity, Consolidation and Consensus’, the report added.

Within the BRICS, during the last one year, relations were fraught with many tense moments specially between India and China when both the armies clashed near the LAC in eastern Ladakh.

The AIR reported that now only India and China are undergoing disengagement at various friction points being watched cautiously. Brazil on its part was critical of China on matters related to COVID-19.

Even then, all the leaders attended the 2020 BRICS Summit which was held virtually under Russian chairship. India also hosted SCO Heads of Government meet virtually last year during the tensions with China and it was attended by China. It is not yet clear whether BRICS Summit in 2021 will take place physically or virtually, it said.

The group was formalised as BRIC in September 2006, during the 1st BRIC Foreign Ministers’ Meeting, which met on the sidelines of the General Debate of the UN Assembly in New York City.

After a series of high-level meetings, the 1st BRIC summit was held in Yekaterinburg, Russia on 16 June 2009.

BRIC group was renamed as BRICS (Brazil, Russia, India, China, South Africa) after South Africa was accepted as a full member in September 2010, the AIR reported.

=BRICS is an important grouping bringing together the major emerging economies from the world, comprising 41% of the world population, having 24% of the world GDP and over 16% share in world trade.

Over a period of time, BRICS countries have come together to deliberate on important issues under the three pillars of political and security, economic and financial and cultural and people to people exchanges, the report added.