Rahul Gandhi, the Leader of Opposition in the Lok Sabha, met Malaysian Prime Minister Anwar Ibrahim for a breakfast meeting in Delhi on Sunday during the ongoing BRICS Summit. The Congress party shared photos of the meeting on its social media platforms. The meeting took place as Ibrahim was in India for the BRICS Summit, which is being held in the national capital on September 12-13.

The meeting between Gandhi and Ibrahim came a day after Prime Minister Narendra Modi and Ibrahim held talks focusing on cooperation in trade, semiconductors, infrastructure, and defence. Malaysia is a partner country in the BRICS grouping and also a key partner for India within the ASEAN grouping. The Congress party’s general secretary, Priyanka Gandhi Vadra, was also present during the meeting.

PM Modi and Ibrahim met on the margins of the BRICS Summit, discussing the growing defence partnership, expanding two-way investments, and deeper people-to-people links. Modi highlighted the new momentum in the bilateral comprehensive strategic partnership, while Ibrahim raised the need to facilitate the entry of Malaysian export goods into the Indian market.

The Ministry of External Affairs (MEA) stated that the two leaders reviewed the outcomes of Modi’s visit to Malaysia in February and progress in cooperation across areas such as trade and investment, defence and security, infrastructure, digital economy, energy, fintech, education, tourism, and people-to-people ties. Anwar also conveyed Malaysia’s concurrence to the establishment of an Indian consulate at Kota Kinabalu in Sabah.

The details of the breakfast meeting between Gandhi and Ibrahim were not elaborated beyond the Congress party’s social media posts. The focus of the meeting, while mentioned as being on India-Malaysia ties, lacks specific details on the outcomes or agreements reached.

The meeting between Gandhi and Ibrahim occurred amid ongoing discussions at the BRICS Summit, which is a platform for cooperation among Brazil, Russia, India, China, and South Africa. Malaysia, though not a BRICS member, is a partner country in the grouping. The summit is expected to address issues such as economic cooperation, trade, and global governance. The presence of Ibrahim at the summit underscores the importance of India-Malaysia relations in the broader regional context.

The supplied evidence does not provide further details on the nature of the breakfast meeting or any specific agreements reached between Gandhi and Ibrahim. The focus of the meeting appears to have been on strengthening bilateral ties, but the exact outcomes or future plans remain unclear. The absence of a formal statement from Ibrahim’s office means that the details of the meeting are limited to the information shared by the Congress party.

The meeting between Gandhi and Ibrahim highlights the ongoing efforts to deepen India’s relationships with its regional partners, particularly within ASEAN and BRICS. However, the lack of detailed information on the meeting’s outcomes means that the full implications of the meeting remain to be seen. Further developments will depend on official statements from both the Indian and Malaysian governments.