Putin Praises India's Economic Growth At 16th BRICS Summit

Russian President Vladimir Putin on Wednesday lauded India's economic growth, saying the country serves as an example for many BRICS nations. Putin made the remarks in his address at the 16th BRICS Summit in the Russian city of Kazan, where he thanked Prime Minister Narendra Modi for his participation in the three-day summit.

"All of us talk about the need to ensure high economic growth rates; you (Modi) manage to do this successfully," Putin was quoted as saying by the state-run TASS news agency.

"We congratulate you on these results — 7.5% growth; this is an example for many of us,” he noted. “Thank you for your initiatives,” Putin added.

India's economy is expected to be 7% this year and 6.5% in 2025.

BRICS, consisting of Brazil, Russia, India, China and South Africa, has now expanded with five additional members - Egypt, Ethiopia, Iran, Saudi Arabia, and the UAE.

Putin's remarks came as a senior official from the International Monetary Fund said that India remains the largest growing economy in the world while observing that the country's macroeconomic fundamentals are good.

"India is said to remain the largest growing economy in the world. We project growth at 7% in FY24-25, supported by recovery in rural consumption, as there have been favourable harvests. Inflation is expected to decline to 4.4% in FY24-25, despite some volatility as food prices normalize," Krishna Srinivasan, Director for the IMF Asia Pacific Department, said on Tuesday.

On Tuesday, Putin held bilateral talks with Modi on the sidelines of the BRICS summit.

In his opening remarks at the meeting, Putin noted the 'good condition' of trade turnover between Russia and India.

According to the press service of the Russian President, last year bilateral trade turnover reached a record high of $56.8 billion, an increase of more than 60%, TASS reported.

In January-August of this year, due to oil supplies, trade turnover between Russia and India increased by 9% year-on-year and amounted to $37.4 billion.