Leaders of the BRICS group of nations unanimously adopted a joint declaration on the first day of the two-day summit in the Indian capital, New Delhi, despite divisions among members over the wars in Iran and Ukraine. The New Delhi Declaration, adopted on Saturday, called for restraint in the Middle East but avoided condemning the US-Israeli strikes or Iran’s targeting of Gulf countries in the region. It also criticised the global trade war without naming the United States.
Chinese President Xi Jinping and his Russian counterpart, Vladimir Putin, were among the leaders attending the gathering of the 11-member bloc in New Delhi at a time of global upheaval caused by the US-Israel war on Iran, Trump’s tariff war and the US’s unilateral decisions to promote its foreign policy. Al Jazeera’s Um-e-Kulsoom Shariff, reporting from New Delhi, said the group “steered clear” of naming any countries, even on the issue of wide-ranging US tariffs. So India had to keep in mind that it has bilateral trade relations with other countries, and so do others.” Indian Prime Minister Narendra Modi said BRICS had reached a “coming of age” moment and called on the Global South to become a “rule-shaper” rather than simply accept rules set elsewhere.
Here are key takeaways from the declaration from the summit: BRICS was founded in 2006 by Brazil, Russia, India and China, mainly as an economic forum. South Africa joined the grouping four years later. It has since expanded to include Egypt, Ethiopia, Iran, the United Arab Emirates, Saudi Arabia and Indonesia.
The BRICS nations constitute nearly half the world’s population and account for approximately 40 percent of global gross domestic product (GDP). The bloc has sought greater influence for developing economies in institutions traditionally dominated by Western powers and has pushed for reforms to bodies, including the World Bank, the International Monetary Fund and the World Trade Organization. Conveying India’s position, Modi insisted that the bloc should not be interpreted simply as an anti-Western project.
The war was one of the biggest tests of whether the expanded BRICS could reach a common position. Leaders expressed “deep concern over the continued escalation of tensions” in the Middle East and called for “maximum restraint”, while urging countries to avoid actions that could further aggravate the situation. It did not mention the US, Israel, Iran or the Gulf states explicitly.
China’s Xi said in a statement the war “does not serve the common interests of the international community”, and called for a political settlement and a permanent and comprehensive ceasefire. In May, BRICS foreign ministers failed to agree on a joint statement amid differences over the war. Iran is a member of BRICS, as is the UAE, which has faced Iranian attacks during the conflict.
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