Between October 22 and 24, the BRICS countries met for the grouping’s XVI Summit, held in Kazan, Russia, under the motto “Strengthening multilateralism for fair global development and security”.

This year’s BRICS meeting was strongly marked by the leading role of Vladimir Putin, who “took advantage” of the Summit to demonstrate that Moscow is not isolated internationally. This effort takes place in a context marked by the Russian invasion of Ukraine, which has been ongoing since February 2022, and by numerous Western sanctions against Russia. 36 countries sent leaders to participate in the event, in addition to the presence of UN Secretary-General Antonio Guterres (Monin, 2024) – it is the largest international meeting led by Putin since the beginning of the Russian incursion into Ukrainian territory (Deutsche Welle, 2024). In addition to the heads of state of the BRICS countries, the meeting was also attended by important leaders from the Global South, such as Recep Tayyip Erdoğan (President of Turkey) and Nicolás Maduro (President of Venezuela). The presence of several leaders is an asset not only for Russia, but also demonstrates the consolidation of the legitimacy and recognition of the grouping as an important space for global governance.