Prime Minister Narendra Modi held a series of bilateral meetings with his counterparts from Ethiopia, Malaysia and Vietnam as well as the Crown Prince of Abu Dhabi on the sidelines of the BRICS Summit 2026 in New Delhi. The Prime Minister began his bilateral engagements by holding talks with his Ethiopian counterpart Dr Abiy Ahmed Ali. The Ministry of External Affairs said in a statement that the two leaders held discussions aimed at further strengthening the bilateral Strategic Partnership.
Both the leaders reviewed progress across key sectors, including economic cooperation, defence and security partnership, and capacity building. The meeting built on Prime Minister Modi’s historic visit to Addis Ababa in December 2025. The two leaders also exchanged perspectives on regional and international developments of mutual interest and reaffirmed their commitment to close cooperation in multilateral fora. During the meeting, Prime Minister Modi expressed appreciation for Ethiopia’s participation in the 18th BRICS Summit and noted that its presence helped in reinforcing the collective voice of the Global South.
The Prime Minister also held bilateral talks with his Malaysian counterpart, Anwar Ibrahim. During the meeting, the two leaders reviewed the progress in bilateral cooperation across a range of areas, including trade and investment, defence and security and people-to-people ties. They also took stock of the outcomes of Prime Minister Modi’s visit to Malaysia in February this year. Mr Modi appreciated Malaysia’s continued support in strengthening ASEAN-India relations. The leaders exchanged views on key regional and global issues of mutual interest and expressed their continued commitment to advancing the India-Malaysia Comprehensive Strategic Partnership.
In the meeting with his Vietnamese counterpart, Le Minh Hung, Prime Minister Modi welcomed Vietnam’s participation in the BRICS Summit as a Partner Country. The Ministry of External Affairs said that the meeting provided an opportunity for both leaders to review the progress made in bilateral ties, which were elevated to an Enhanced Comprehensive Strategic Partnership during the State Visit of Vietnamese President To Lam to India in May this year. Both leaders also exchanged views on various regional and global issues of mutual importance and reaffirmed the commitment to further strengthening their partnership. India and Vietnam share a time-tested friendship rooted in shared civilisational heritage, mutual trust and understanding. Vietnam is a key pillar of India’s Act East Policy and an important partner in India’s broader engagement with Southeast Asia.
The Prime Minister also held bilateral talks with the Crown Prince of Abu Dhabi, Sheikh Khaled bin Mohamed bin Zayed Al Nahyan. During the meeting, both sides reiterated the significance of the India-UAE Comprehensive Strategic Partnership, which is built on strong political, cultural, commercial, energy, and people-to-people relations. Both sides also agreed that the two countries will continue to work closely to advance shared interests and priorities and further strengthen BRICS cooperation. The two leaders positively noted the announcement by UAE’s International Holding Company to invest in the development of a 11.5 billion US Dollar integrated greenfield aluminium project in Odisha. The project is expected to position Odisha as a global aluminium manufacturing hub.
