Anwar Ibrahim and Vladimir Putin Hold Bilateral Talks at BRICS Summit
Prime Minister Anwar Ibrahim met Russian President Vladimir Putin on the sidelines of the 18th BRICS Leaders’ Summit in New Delhi, marking his first bilateral engagement at the event.
During the 18th BRICS Leaders’ Summit in New Delhi, Prime Minister Anwar Ibrahim and President Vladimir Putin convened for a bilateral discussion, the first such meeting for Anwar at the summit. The dialogue focused on reinforcing the historic relationship between Malaysia and Russia, which has existed since 1967 across sectors like trade, energy, education and defence. Both leaders reiterated their intent to broaden economic ties, noting Malaysia’s ambition to deepen engagement with emerging economies and the Global South.
The talks underscored Malaysia’s recent accession as a BRICS partner and its pursuit of a balanced international system. Trade figures for ASEAN-Russia and Malaysia-Russia were cited to illustrate existing commercial links. The encounter is part of Malaysia’s broader foreign-policy strategy to enhance strategic partnerships.
Why it matters
The talks signal Malaysia’s effort to boost ties with Russia and expand its influence within the BRICS framework.
How the sides frame it
MODERATE AGREEMENTBoth camps report the bilateral meeting and general cooperation, but centrist coverage highlights the meeting as a “great” encounter and long-standing ties, while right-leaning coverage stresses the creation of a fast-track mechanism to accelerate agreements and specific trade benefits.
CENTER
Centrist coverage frames the meeting as a positive, “great” encounter that underscores longstanding diplomatic relations and broad cooperation between Malaysia and Russia.
RIGHT
Right-leaning coverage frames the meeting as a pragmatic step to establish a fast-track mechanism that will speed up bilateral agreements and boost concrete economic ties such as direct flights and palm-oil imports.
The right emphasises
- announces a dedicated fast-track mechanism to expedite Malaysia-Russia agreements
- highlights targets like direct flight routes and increased palm-oil imports
- cites a 12.9 percent growth in trade turnover and Russia’s interest in education, science, technology and tourism
How this story developed
- Sep 4 India Hosts 2026 BRICS Leaders Summit with Global Leaders in New Delhi
- Sep 9 A bilateral meeting between Modi and Putin has been added to the summit agenda.
- Sep 9 India is positioning the summit as a development‑oriented bridge and has set aside the idea of a shared BRICS currency.
- Sep 10 India’s chairmanship delivered 20 sector‑specific agreements on SMEs, startups and supply‑chain resilience.
- Sep 10 Chinese President Xi Jinping is expected to attend the summit, marking his first visit to India since 2019.
- Sep 10 India deploys roughly 25,000 security personnel and implements traffic diversions ahead of the summit.
- Sep 11 Delhi traffic to be rerouted from 2 pm to 8:30 pm on Friday for the BRICS summit.
- Sep 11 Prime Minister Narendra Modi and Russian President Vladimir Putin rode together in the Russian leader's Aurus limousine from the SCO summit to their bilateral meeting venue in New Delhi.
- Sep 11 Russian President Vladimir Putin, Chinese President Xi Jinping and Iranian President Masoud Pezeshkian touched down in New Delhi for bilateral talks ahead of the summit.
- Sep 11 The two leaders shared a car ride to the INNOPROM India exhibition after their bilateral talks.
- Sep 11 BRICS expanded to eleven member countries.
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