The 17th Brics summit has begun in Brazil’s Rio de Janeiro and leaders, including Prime Minister Modi and South Africa’s Cyril Ramaphosa are in attendance. However, for the first time since taking power in 2012,

A summit of leaders from the BRICS group of major emerging economies kicks off in Brazil Sunday – but without the top leader of its most powerful member.

Xi Jinping and Vladimir Putin were both missing from the BRICS summit that kicked off Sunday in Rio de Janeiro, hosted by Brazilian President Luiz Inacio Lula da Silva. According to Bloomberg, neither leader showed up,