PRIME MINISTER Datuk Seri Anwar Ibrahim is set to meet his counterparts from India and Ethiopia on the margins of the BRICS Leaders’ Summit in Rio de Janeiro, Brazil, as part of Malaysia’s deepening engagement with key international partners.
Anwar, who arrived in Brazil on Saturday, will hold bilateral discussions with Indian Prime Minister Narendra Modi and Ethiopian Prime Minister Abiy Ahmed Ali on Monday. The meetings will take place after Anwar delivers Malaysia’s national statement at the summit.
The meeting with Modi is scheduled to take place at the Museum of Modern Art. The two leaders last met at the 21st ASEAN-India Summit in Laos in 2023.
Anwar will be accompanied by Transport Minister Anthony Loke and Minister of Investment, Trade and Industry Tengku Datuk Seri Zafrul Abdul Aziz during the discussions.
Also on the Prime Minister’s agenda is a meeting with Francisco Gomes Neto, President and CEO of Brazilian aircraft manufacturer Embraer, which recently participated in the Langkawi International Maritime and Aerospace Exhibition (LIMA) 2025.
Anwar is further scheduled to receive a courtesy call from Dilma Rousseff, President of the New Development Bank (NDB), the financial institution established by BRICS to support infrastructure and sustainable development projects in member and partner countries.
Malaysia is attending the summit as a BRICS Partner Country, having formally joined in that capacity on 1 January 2025, and as the current Chair of ASEAN.
NDB has proven its strength, says Russia’s Siluanov
The New Development Bank (NDB), which marks a decade since its establishment, has demonstrated both viability and effectiveness, according to Russian Finance Minister Anton Siluanov.
Speaking after the annual meeting of the NDB Board of Governors and a session involving BRICS finance ministers and central bank governors, Siluanov said, "The New Development Bank has been operating for 10 years. The institution has proved its efficiency and effectiveness. A decision has been made to establish a guarantee mechanism, which we are talking about now, on the basis of this institution."
He also highlighted the bank’s potential to facilitate cross-border financial transactions, adding, "We also talked about its new functions. The guarantee mechanism, and we believe that this bank can be used as a bank for cross-border settlements."
The summit saw discussions on the future use of digital financial assets and currencies, particularly in facilitating international settlements.
“We agreed that the topic will continue to develop, since new financial instruments are obviously on the BRICS agenda. And therefore, issues of cross-border payments using digital capabilities and the use of digital financial assets for settlements were one of the topics on the agenda,” Siluanov said.
The Russian Finance Ministry confirmed that the next annual NDB meeting will take place in Russia in 2026. The Board of Governors also approved the accession of Colombia and Uzbekistan, bringing total membership to 11 nations. Existing members include Brazil, Russia, India, China, South Africa, Bangladesh, the UAE, Egypt and Algeria.
The NDB was politically endorsed at the BRICS summit in Durban in 2013, with its founding agreement signed the following year in Fortaleza. The bank officially began operations in July 2015, with a mission to finance infrastructure and sustainable development projects in BRICS and developing countries. - July 6, 2025
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