In what will likely be framed as a show of strength in the face of sanctions and geopolitical ostracization over the war in Ukraine, Russia is hosting the 16th annual BRICS summit in Kazan between Tuesday and Thursday.

The summit, which leaders from two dozen nations will attend, is the largest event Russia has hosted in years.

Nearly three years after Russia’s invasion of Ukraine saw Moscow condemned by countries globally, leader Vladimir Putin is staging a summit with more than a dozen world leaders – in a pointed signal from the autocrat that far from being alone,