BRICS meet: NSAs discuss new threats and challenges to national security

Top security officials of the BRICS countries have held an in-depth exchange of views and reached a consensus on issues such as strengthening multilateralism and global governance and responding to new threats and challenges to national security.

National Security Advisor Ajit Doval on Wednesday attended via video link the 12th Meeting of BRICS (Brazil, Russia, India, China and South Africa) National Security Advisers and High Representatives on National Security.

Doval called for bolstering cooperation against terrorism without any reservations as he addressed a virtual meeting of the five-nation grouping BRICS.

The meeting also discussed strengthening and improving governance in new frontiers, the state-run Xinhua news agency reported.

All parties expressed their readiness to work for fruitful outcomes of the 14th BRICS summit, it said.

The meeting reviewed the work of the working group on counter-terrorism and cyber security, agreed to jointly promote plans and roadmaps for international counter-terrorism and cyber security cooperation, and uphold the central coordinating role of the United Nations in the global counter-terrorism cause.

The officials called for a more inclusive, representative and democratic global Internet governance system.

China, which is this year's chair of the BRICS grouping, is due to host the summit of the five-member bloc. The BRICS virtual summit is scheduled to be held on June 23 and June 24.

In his address, Yang Jiechi, the director of the Office of the Foreign Affairs Commission of the Communist Party of China (CPC), highlighted the Global Security Initiative (GSI) forward by Chinese President Xi Jinping to address the current global security issues.

Yang said the BRICS was born in the historical tide of the collective rise of emerging markets and developing countries and represents the direction of the evolution and adjustment of the world pattern and international order.

He called on the five countries to follow the trend of times, respond to changes of the times and inject more stability and positive energy into the turbulent international situation.

He also called on BRICS countries to practice true multilateralism, address both traditional and non-traditional security threats in a coordinated manner, advocate solidarity, and coordinate security and development to realise the "common, comprehensive, cooperative and sustainable security."

South Africa's Minister in the Presidency Mondli Gungubele, Brazil's Minister of Institutional Security Augusto Heleno, and Secretary of the Security Council of the Russian Federation Nikolai Patrushev attended the meeting.

Doval also spoke about the need for continuing cooperation against the challenges of pandemics and climate change.

He called for giving importance to cooperation in the areas of Information and Communication Technology (ICT), outer space and maritime security.

He said there is a need to prevent the use of ICT by terrorists.

Doval also delved into the importance of having "trusted and resilient supply chains".