Modi to attend BRICS summit

NEW DELHI: Prime Minister Narendra Modi will travel to Xiamen in China to attend the BRICS summit which will be held from September 3-5, the Ministry of External Affairs said on Tuesday.

Millennium Post was the first to report that the Prime Minister would indeed attend the summit when there was wide speculation that the Doklam standoff might prompt a change in the PM’S plans.

The announcement of Modi’s visit comes a day after India and China ended their 73-day standoff in Dokalam by withdrawing their troops from the area.

“At the invitation of the President of People’s Republic of China, Prime Minister Narendra Modi will visit Xiamen in China’s Fujian province during September 3-5, 2017 to attend the 9th BRICS Summit,” MEA said.

From China, the Prime Minister will travel to Myanmar for a state visit from September 5 to 7 at the invitation of Myanmar President U Htin Kyaw.

It will be Modi’s first bilateral state visit to Myanmar.

“During the visit, Prime Minister will hold discussions with State Counsellor Daw Aung San Suu Kyi on matters of mutual interest and also call on President U Htin Kyaw. Apart from his engagements in the capital city of Nay Pyi Taw, he will visit Yangon and Bagan,” MEA said.

Modi had visited Myanmar’s capital Nay Pyi Taw in November 2014 to attend the ASEAN summit.

The Prime Minister also said on Tuesday that his government took various decisions with courage and executed them with conviction, unlike the previous dispensation which had crippled the whole system.

The whole system had been “crippled” when the NDA government assumed office, he said addressing a massive rally at Udaipur in Rajasthan.

“Had there been anyone weak in such a situation, he would have been intimidated. But, we are from a different soil. We accept challenges, find solutions and move ahead on the development path,” he said. More reports inside