BRICS Summit Produces Declaration Despite Iran-UAE Rift

Leaders from the 11-nation BRICS group gathered in New Delhi this weekend under pressure to demonstrate cohesion while wars in the Middle East and Ukraine continued to disrupt energy markets and shipping lanes. The bloc adopted a joint declaration that condemns unilateral aggression without naming any country, according to four sources cited by Reuters. Indian Prime Minister Narendra Modi, hosting the meeting, told participants that the group must convert its size into concrete influence on global institutions.

The declaration emerged after negotiators bridged differences between Iran and the United Arab Emirates, two members on opposing sides of the Gulf conflict. Foreign ministers had failed to issue a joint statement on the same issue during a May meeting in the same city. Xi Jinping arrived for his first visit to India in seven years, holding talks with Modi on border issues that remain unresolved after a 2020 clash. Vladimir Putin and Masoud Pezeshkian also attended, alongside representatives from Brazil, Egypt, Ethiopia, Indonesia and South Africa.

Discussions covered cross-border payments outside the dollar, energy cooperation and artificial intelligence. Modi separately urged freedom of navigation after attacks on vessels in the Strait of Hormuz stranded Indian seafarers. The group accounts for roughly half the world’s population and about 40 percent of global GDP, yet members hold sharply different views on sanctions, trade barriers and the role of Western-led financial bodies. The final text is expected to call for reform of the UN Security Council and other institutions without specifying enforcement steps.