The first summit meeting of BRIC (Brazil, Russia, India and China) leaders started in Russia's Ural city of Yekaterinburg on Tuesday.

This was the first full-scale summit of BRIC leaders and the leaders would discuss the world economic situation, Russian President Dmitri Medvedev said at the opening of the meeting.

In terms of population, all four BRIC nations are large countries, and in a meeting of this format, the leaders can clearly understand each other's views and positions, said Medvedev.

The leaders were also expected to discuss the global financial system, the financial crisis, energy cooperation and environmental protection.

Senior Chinese Foreign Ministry official Wu Hailong said on Monday the meeting will play an important role in efforts to tackle the international financial crisis, push forward the Doha round of global trade talks and fight protectionism. Cooperation among BRIC countries is open and transparent and not targeted at third countries, he said at a news briefing.

China believes cooperation among BRIC countries should proceed in a gradual manner, Wu said.

BRIC, a term coined by Goldman Sachs economist Jim O'Neill in 2003, refers to the four emerging economies of Brazil, Russia, India and China.

BRICs accounted for 42 percent of the world's population, 14.6 percent of global gross domestic product (GDP) and 12.8 percent of the global trade volume in 2008.?