Global trade can advance only if navigation in international waters is free and seafarers are safe, Prime Minister Narendra Modi said on Friday. The statement comes in the wake of the prolonged –and often severe — disruptions in the Strait of Hormuz amid the US-Iran conflict, and the escalation it caused to global energy prices. Addressing the Business Forum ahead of the 18th BRICS Summit in New Delhi, Modi called for the 11-country grouping to turn its growing economic weight into greater investment and expanded business ties. He urged the grouping to identify and remove its top 10 trade barriers, scale 100 BRICS startups into other member markets every year and build 1,000 new business partnerships annually.