India to be first President of the bank

FORTALEZA, BRAZIL (TIP): The new development bank of the group of BRICS countries will be headquartered in Shanghai, China, with the presidency initially held by India. The deal was reached after intense lastminute negotiations to settle a dispute between India and China over the headquarters of the new bank, which will have initial capital of $100 billion to invest in infrastructure projects.

“The agreement towards setting up the BRICS New Development Bank is a significant step. I am happy the initiative announced in 2012 in Delhi has become a reality,” PM Modi said. BRICS is a group of emerging economies and draws its name from the five member countries – Brazil, Russia, India, China and South Africa. To create the bank dragged on for more than two years as Brazil and India fought China’s attempts to get a bigger share in the lender than the others. Negotiations had also been stalled over who would host the bank – China, India or South Africa.

There were also tough negotiations over shareholding. China argued that the economic strength of a member nation should be the criteria for contribution to the bank – a higher contribution will automatically mean greater control. But India demanded that each member have an equal share. The BRICS summit is Modi’s first multilateral engagement since he took over as Prime Minister in May this year.

Modi met Chinese president Xi Jinping on Tuesday, July 15 mornings. Modi pressed for a solution to the boundary question, saying if the two sides could amicably resolve the vexed issue, it would set an example for the world on peaceful conflict resolution. Later at night, he met with Russian President Vladimir Putin. Speaking in Hindi, the PM said India was excited to host the Russian leader in December. On microblogging website Twitter, the PM said he talked about strengthening Russia- India ties.

Talked about strengthening Russia-India ties in my meeting with President Putin.We value our friendship with Russia. – Narendra Modi (@narendramodi) July 16, 2014 Modi conveyed his sincere appreciation and admiration for Putin’s decisive leadership in deepening and expanding the India-Russia special and privileged strategic partnership. The Prime Minister further expressed deep appreciation for Russia’s friendship and unstinting bilateral and international support for India’s economic development and security since the early days of India’s independence. Modi also reaffirmed that relations with Russia will continue to enjoy the priority that they always had in India’s foreign policy.

Modi, who had also met Putin in 2001 in Moscow, remarked, “Even a child in India, if asked to say who is India’s best friend, will reply it is Russia because Russia has been with India in times of crisis.” The PM added that he looked forward to working with the Russian President to further deepen and broad-base the strategic partnership including in the areas of defense, nuclear energy, space, energy, trade and investment, people-to-people contacts and addressing regional and global challenges.

Narendra Modi met Chinese President Xi Jinping and pressed for a solution to the boundary question

The two leaders looked forward to their Annual Summit in Delhi in December 2014 as an opportunity to outline a bold vision and roadmap for their relationship in the years ahead. During his 40-minute meet, the Prime Minister invited President Vladimir Putin to visit Kudankulam atomic power project during his trip. Putin responded saying “it is a good idea”. Putin congratulated Modi on his great victory in the recent elections. The Prime Minister said there was a need to look at a liberal visa regime, especially students going for studies.

Prime Minister Narendra Modi on Tuesday, July 15 night held talks with Russian President Vladimir Putin and talked about strengthening India- Russia ties

Putin also acknowledged that the case needed to be looked into, MEA spokesman Syed Akbaruddin said. Modi fondly recalled his visit to Russia’s Astrakan region in his early days as Chief Minister of Gujarat which has ties with that region. Talking about that visit, he said he felt as if he was in India. Putin said Russia places its relations with India high enough in the strategic framework. Nuclear power project has been a symbol of India-Russia relations. Modi appreciated Putin’s speech at the BRICS summit, saying it was clear on issues like reforms of the UN Security Council and international financial organizations.