Sawt Falasteen - India, China and S.Africa leaders bolster Putin at key summit

Putin is hosting around 20 world leaders -- including China's President Xi Jinping, India's Prime Minister Narendra Modi and Turkey's President Recep Tayyip Erdogan -- for a three-day gathering of the BRICS group in the central city of Kazan.

The Kremlin leader wants to use the forum to challenge the West and advance his idea of a "multipolar world" as a bulwark against US "hegemony".

The gathering is the largest diplomatic event in Russia since it sent troops into Ukraine in February 2022 and comes after Putin scrapped plans to attend last year's summit in South Africa after the International Criminal Court issued an arrest warrant for him.

In a series of bilateral talks on Tuesday, including with Xi and Modi, Putin hailed Moscow's close ties and "strategic partnerships" with its chosen partners.

But concerns over Moscow's Ukraine offensive, grinding through its third year, still loomed over the event.

Modi, who is casting himself as a possible peacemaker, called for a quick end to the conflict during televised talks with Putin.

"We have been in constant touch over the conflict between Russia and Ukraine," Modi told Putin after the two shook hands and embraced.

"We believe that disputes should only be resolved peacefully. We totally support efforts to quickly restore peace and stability," the Indian leader added.

India has walked a delicate tightrope since the Ukraine conflict began, pledging humanitarian support for Kyiv while avoiding explicit condemnation of Moscow's actions.

Modi visited Kyiv in August and Moscow in July in an effort to encourage talks -- an initiative that appeared to make little progress.

Moscow has steadily advanced on the battlefield in eastern Ukraine this year as it strengthens ties with the likes of China, Iran and North Korea.

- 'Chaotic world' -

Xi, meanwhile, praised China's "profound" ties with Russia in what he called a "chaotic" world.

Ties have "injected strong impetus into the development, revitalisation and modernisation of the two countries", Xi said.

Putin said he saw relations between Beijing and China as a foundation of global "stability."

"Russian-Chinese cooperation in world affairs acts as one of the stabilising factors in the global arena. We intend to further increase coordination in all multilateral platforms to ensure global security and a just world order," he told Xi.

The two leaders discussed the conflict in Ukraine behind closed doors, Kremlin spokesman Dmitry Peskov told state media, while providing no details.

"There was an exchange of opinions on Ukraine," the spokesman said.

"In general, on the international agenda, there was a significant convergence of positions," Peskov added.

Ukraine has heavily criticised China for backing Putin, accusing Beijing of supporting and enabling Moscow's offensive.

South African President Cyril Ramaphosa, who has also urged an end to the conflict, praised Moscow as a "valued ally" and friend in his meeting with Putin.

"We continue to see Russia as a valued ally, as a valued friend, who supported us right from the beginning: from the days of our struggle against Apartheid, right through to now," Ramaphosa said.

- 'Geopolitical rival' -

The summit is being held amidst tight security in Kazan.

Around 1,000 kilometres (620 miles) from the Ukraine border, the surrounding Tatarstan region has been previously targeted in drone attacks launched by Kyiv.

Movement around the city centre is being limited, residents advised to stay home, and university students moved out of dormitories, local media reported.

Among the topics on the official agenda will be Putin's idea for a BRICS-led payment system to rival SWIFT, an international financial network that Russian banks were cut off from in 2022, as well as the escalating conflict in the Middle East.

Separate talks between Putin and Erdogan as well as Iran's President Masoud Pezeshkian are planned for Wednesday.

UN Secretary General Antonio Guterres will meet Putin on Thursday -- a visit slammed by Ukraine's foreign ministry.

The United States has dismissed the idea that BRICS could become a "geopolitical rival" but has expressed concern over Moscow flexing its diplomatic muscle as the Ukraine conflict rages.

Starting with four members -- Brazil, Russia, India and China, when it was established in 2009, BRICS has since expanded to include other emerging nations such as South Africa, Egypt and Iran.

But the group is rife with internal divisions, including between core members India and China.

Turkey, a NATO member with complex ties to Moscow and the West, announced in September that it wanted to join the bloc.

I.Matar--SF-PST