Prime Minister Narendra Modi held a meeting with Cuba's President Miguel Diaz-Canel Bermudez on the sidelines of the 17th BRICS Summit in Rio de Janeiro on Sunday. During the meeting, Diaz-Canel expressed interest in India's Digital Public Infrastructure and UPI.

During the meeting, the two leaders reviewed bilateral ties in the areas of economic cooperation, development partnership, fintech, capacity building, science and technology, disaster management and healthcare, according to the Ministry of External Affairs (MEA) statement.

In a statement, MEA stated, "Acknowledging India's expertise in the digital domain, President Diaz-Canel expressed interest in India's Digital Public Infrastructure and UPI. Prime Minister conveyed appreciation for Cuba's recognition of Ayurveda and extended support for integrating Ayurveda into Cuba's public health system. Prime Minister proposed Cuba's recognition of Indian pharmacopoeia, which will lead to access to Indian generic medicines."

PM Modi and Miguel Diaz-Canel Bermudez agreed to work on issues of concern to the Global South, including those in the areas of health, pandemics, and climate change. They appreciated the cooperation between the two countries in the multilateral arena.

The meeting between the two leaders comes after their earlier meeting during the BRICS Summit in Johannesburg in 2023, where Cuba was a special invitee.

In a post on X, PM Modi stated, "It was wonderful to meet President Miguel Diaz-Canel Bermudez of Cuba. In our talks, we covered a wide range of subjects. Economic relations between our nations have a lot of potential to grow in the coming times. Equally promising are sectors like technology, healthcare and energy. The growing acceptance of Ayurveda in Cuba is surely a great thing. We even discussed ways to strengthen disaster management apparatus."

The BRICS Summit, hosted by Brazil, brought together leaders from Brazil, Russia, India, China, South Africa, as well as new members Egypt, Ethiopia, Iran, the UAE, and Indonesia during the event.