Putin Takes "40%" Dig At G7, Compares It With BRICS' Contribution To World GDP

Russian President Vladimir Putin on Friday drew a comparison between the BRICS grouping of emerging economies and G7 of developed countries, underlining that BRICS contributes more to the global economy. He was speaking at the BRICS Business Forum in New Delhi, where Prime Minister Narendra Modi later cited the same statistics to stress the importance of the group that has grown to 21 members.

Putin said, "Over the last five years, more than 40 per cent of the world GDP (gross domestic product) has been produced by the BRICS countries, whereas the contribution of the so-called G7, the Group of Seven -- I don't know why they call that the Group of Seven -- stands at only 29 per cent."

"The world is always changing, and this is attested to by the objective facts of the last five years," he noted, speaking in Russian accompanied by an official translation. "Right now the world is undergoing structural, deep, profound shifts... The so-called old leaders, which used to be the vanguard of economic growth, are being replaced by new engines of growth," he added.

'Competition Taking Ugly Forms': Putin Jabs West

He also accused the West in general of sabotaging the development of other economic powers. "We have been told for quite some time that competition is sacrosanct... But our Western competitors are doing everything to get back their erstwhile competitive edge, and sometimes this competition is taking some ugly forms. This is something our colleague from Iran has spoken about," he said, not naming but apparently referring to the Strait of Hormuz crisis amid the US war on Iran.

"Sometimes, there are measures resorted to of a physical nature, when pipelines are being destroyed, when attempts are undertaken to block international transport corridors, to seize maritime vessels," he said, and then referred to sanctions imposed on Russia, in the wake of the Ukraine war and otherwise.

"Illegal restrictions are being applied, and there's also the threat of so-called secondary sanctions against those who do not want to follow someone else's interests and rather look after their own," Putin said.

"More than 30,000 sanctions have been slapped on Russia, which is twice the number of all sanctions against all the other countries of the world combined," he further said, adding, "Against this difficult backdrop, Russia has been working actively, relying on its business, science, education, engineering schools, on our personnel, on Russian citizens, and managed to achieve great success. We have reinforced our national sovereignty; we are developing ties with reliable, predictable partners."

VIDEO | BRICS Business Forum: Russian President Vladimir Putin says, "...The world is always changing, and this is attested to by the objective facts of the last five years. And I think these statistics have already been cited by our colleague from Indonesia. Over the last five… pic.twitter.com/UZkKgGfH89

— Press Trust of India (@PTI_News) September 11, 2026

The Group of Seven (G7) is an informal bloc of seven of the world's most advanced economies -- Canada, France, Germany, Italy, Japan, the United Kingdom, and the United States -- plus the European Union.

BRICS is an alliance of emerging economies and developing nations, acronymed after key members Brazil, Russia, India, China and South Africa. Egypt, Ethiopia, Iran, Saudi Arabia, United Arab Emirates, and Indonesia are the other full member nations, taking the total to 11. The 10 partner countries are Belarus, Bolivia, Cuba, Kazakhstan, Malaysia, Nigeria, Thailand, Uganda, Uzbekistan, and Vietnam.

'Half The World's Population'

PM Modi, in the concluding address at the event, took the GDP-contribution argument further: "Today, BRICS nations represent 50 per cent of the world's population, 40 per cent of its GDP, and over 25 per cent of global trade."

Modi added that, while global GDP has grown approximately two-and-a-half-fold over these years, the combined GDP of BRICS nations has expanded nearly four-and-a-half-fold.

"In other words, the economic strength of BRICS has grown at nearly twice the pace of the rest of the world. BRICS nations are also emerging as key hubs for global innovation and solutions. New possibilities for innovation, spanning everything from grassroots initiatives to frontier technologies, are taking shape within our countries. The growing scale, speed, and optimism of BRICS are clearly evident among us. This forum, hosted in India, is the largest BRICS Business Forum to date," he said.

The BRICS Business Forum is the flagship private-sector platform of the grouping that's convened annually in the host country on the eve of the Leaders' Summit. At its opening ceremony, Commerce Minister Piyush Goyal said, "During India's chairship of BRICS, we have been driven by a clear purpose to achieve more balanced trade among our countries and explore the expansion of trade in services across the BRICS family. India remains committed to ensuring that this cooperation benefits our farmers, empowers women and provides greater opportunities to young entrepreneurs and MSMEs."

PM Modi Reiterates Dialogue, Diplomacy To End Wars

Earlier, PM Modi and President Putin held bilateral talks on the margins of the 18th BRICS Summit in New Delhi in what was their second meeting this year. The two leaders had met earlier in Bishkek, Kyrgyzstan, on the sidelines of the 26th SCO Summit on August 31.

"The two leaders reviewed progress in bilateral cooperation in political, economic, defence, energy, space, skill mobility and people-to- people domains," read a statement by the Indian Ministry of External Affairs. "They also shared perspectives on key regional and global issues of mutual interest, including the conflicts in West Asia and the Black Sea region which have impacted maritime trade and the safety and security of Indian seafarers. Prime Minister once again reiterated that dialogue and diplomacy was the way forward in resolving conflicts and India stood ready to assist in peace efforts."

While West Asia, or the Middle East, continues to see hostilities between the US-Israel alliance and Iran, the Russia-Ukraine war in the Black Sea region has escalated sharply in recent weeks.

The MEA statement added, "President Putin invited Prime Minister Modi to visit Russia for the 24th India-Russia Annual Summit. Prime Minister accepted the invitation. The dates of the Summit will be decided as per mutual convenience through diplomatic channels."

PM @narendramodi held wide-ranging discussions with President Putin on various aspects of the India-Russia Special and Privileged Strategic Partnership.

The leaders reviewed progress in bilateral cooperation in sectors including trade, energy, defense, space and people to people… pic.twitter.com/Ml2dOMIvwZ

— Randhir Jaiswal (@MEAIndia) September 11, 2026

The two leaders then travelled together in Putin's car, their fourth such shared ride in recent years.

In Bishkek on August 31, PM Modi said that India supports all efforts towards peace in the Ukraine war. "Every day spent in war sets humanity back, whereas every step taken towards peace fills humanity with new hope and enthusiasm. We must move away from endless war and an end to the war. This is essential for the well-being of humanity." PM Modi added then on what he raised with Putin, "We have consistently discussed the issue of Ukraine. When we met previously, you briefed me in detail on all aspects of the matter. As you know, India supports all efforts towards peace and will continue to do so. A peaceful resolution to all issues at the earliest is the call of humanity, and this is India's message. The land of Gandhi and the land of Buddha share a single message- the path of peace. Today, I look forward to discussing these matters with you."

The conflict between Russia and Ukraine began in February 2022. During the SCO Summit in Samarkand in 2022, PM Modi had said, "Today's era is not an era of war."