For India, the key question at the BRICS Summit was whether a grouping divided by ongoing wars and sharply contrasting positions on West Asia could still reach a common understanding. Another major challenge was ensuring that BRICS did not evolve into an anti-US bloc, particularly as China and Russia increasingly coordinate their positions.
The 18th BRICS Summit took place while two members of the grouping were directly involved in active conflicts. Just four months earlier, BRICS foreign ministers had failed to issue a joint statement in New Delhi because of disagreements over the Middle East.
The inability to reach a joint statement at the foreign ministers’ meeting in Rio de Janeiro in April 2025 had already highlighted how difficult consensus had become within an expanded BRICS. The grouping had grown from five members until 2023 to 11 by 2025, bringing together countries with increasingly varied geopolitical interests.
However, on September 12, the leaders unanimously adopted the New Delhi Declaration. India also succeeded in getting the grouping to collectively condemn the Pahalgam terror attack while ensuring that the broader BRICS agenda remained centred on Global South concerns instead of turning the forum into an openly anti-Western platform.
Economist and Columbia University professor Jeffrey Sachs called the summit a success, saying the declaration demonstrated that “the Brics nations are taking their place in the world scene”. Comparing the outcome with India’s G20 presidency, Sachs said New Delhi had once again succeeded in building consensus despite an extremely challenging global environment.
Over three days, including the eve and two days of the summit, Prime Minister Narendra Modi also held 15 formal bilateral meetings with foreign leaders.
For New Delhi, the diplomatic challenge was to guide a diverse group through two ongoing wars, trade disputes and deep geopolitical divisions without allowing those differences to prevent BRICS from functioning effectively. By that measure, the Delhi summit delivered five important gains for India.
1. NEW DELHI PROVIDED A PLATFORM FOR AN IRAN-UAE MEETING
The Middle East conflict represented the most immediate challenge for the summit.
Iran and the UAE came to the BRICS meeting with sharply different positions on the regional conflict. Since the US-Israel-Iran war began in late February, Iranian missiles and drones have targeted US military installations in the UAE. The issue had already become one of the major sources of tension within BRICS.
In May, the BRICS foreign ministers’ meeting in New Delhi ended without a joint statement because members could not agree on the wording related to the Middle East. Iran wanted stronger criticism of the US-Israeli military campaign, while the UAE opposed positions it considered unacceptable.
As a result, there was no guarantee that the leaders would be able to agree on a declaration in September.
Before the summit, Harsh V Pant, Vice President of Studies and Foreign Policy at the Observer Research Foundation, had warned that tensions between Iran and the UAE could once again make a joint declaration impossible.
The eventual breakthrough was evident not just in the final declaration but also in the diplomatic engagements surrounding the summit.
Both Iran and the UAE supported the BRICS statement urging restraint in the Middle East. On the sidelines of the summit, Iranian President Masoud Pezeshkian met Abu Dhabi Crown Prince Sheikh Khaled bin Mohamed bin Zayed Al Nahyan. Reuters described the meeting as the highest-level engagement between the two countries since the conflict began.
India’s diplomatic success was therefore not only in preventing the Iran-UAE disagreement from dividing BRICS but also in providing New Delhi as a venue for direct engagement between the two sides.
2. INDIA REVIVED CONSENSUS, STRENGTHENING BRICS AS AN INSTITUTION
The second and potentially more important achievement was institutional.
BRICS had already shown that its expansion had made consensus considerably more difficult. The April 2025 foreign ministers’ meeting in Rio de Janeiro failed to produce a joint communique, forcing Brazil, which held the presidency at the time, to issue a chair’s statement instead.
That left the Delhi summit facing an important credibility test: could the leaders accomplish what had proved impossible in 2025 and earlier in 2026? The answer was yes.
The New Delhi Declaration established consensus on geopolitical issues while also covering a broad range of economic and institutional areas.
The document supported continued efforts toward reforming global governance, strengthening development finance, improving trade, expanding digital public infrastructure, advancing artificial intelligence, securing supply chains and deepening cooperation in other fields. It also specifically praised India’s BRICS presidency and thanked New Delhi for hosting the summit.
This was significant because, in a grouping that largely works through consensus, a leaders’ declaration is much more than a ceremonial document. Its adoption demonstrated that internal disagreements could be managed without making BRICS ineffective.
Ahead of the summit, foreign policy expert Harsh V Pant had described this as a crucial test for the grouping’s credibility, noting that many countries viewed BRICS with growing optimism. He had warned that another failure to produce a joint statement could undermine that confidence.
India’s success therefore showed that BRICS, despite becoming increasingly divided, could still reach agreement on a common document.
3. CONDEMNATION OF THE PAHALGAM ATTACK WAS A MAJOR DIPLOMATIC GAIN
Another significant outcome for India was the explicit mention of the April 22, 2025, Pahalgam terror attack.
The New Delhi Declaration states that BRICS members “condemn in the strongest terms” the terrorist attack in Jammu and Kashmir, in which 26 people were killed and several others injured. The declaration reaffirmed the grouping’s commitment to fighting terrorism, including cross-border terrorism, terrorist financing and safe havens. It also called for “zero tolerance” towards terrorism and rejected double standards in counter-terrorism efforts.
China, Indo-Pacific and Taiwan expert Sana Hashmi highlighted the significance of the reference in a post on X.
Although Pakistan was not named in the declaration, the document specifically identified the Pahalgam attack and collectively condemned it as an act of terrorism. It further stated that those involved in terrorist activities, along with their supporters, should be held accountable and brought to justice under applicable national and international law.
That distinction carries considerable diplomatic importance.
The outcome was especially notable given China’s role within BRICS and its close ties with Pakistan. By securing collective condemnation of the Pahalgam attack, New Delhi was able to separate the terrorism issue from the broader geopolitical differences inside the grouping.
It also aligned with India’s wider effort to place counter-terrorism at the centre of its diplomatic agenda. Instead of treating Pahalgam solely as an India-Pakistan dispute, New Delhi situated it within BRICS’ established framework dealing with terrorism, terror financing, safe havens and international accountability.
4. INDIA KEPT BRICS FROM TURNING INTO AN ANTI-US GROUPING
The fourth achievement was less obvious but equally significant.
During its BRICS presidency, India highlighted the concerns of developing countries without allowing the grouping to become an explicitly anti-US or anti-Western alliance.
The declaration called for changes to global governance and greater representation for emerging markets and developing economies. It supported reform of the UN Security Council and noted that China and Russia backed the aspirations of India and Brazil for a greater role within the United Nations, including the Security Council. It also sought increased representation for developing countries in institutions such as the IMF and World Bank.
At the same time, the document criticised unilateral sanctions and protectionist policies. It opposed unilateral coercive measures that violate international law and pointed to their effects on development, healthcare and food security. The declaration also supported a more open, fair and rules-based international trading system.
Russia is facing some of the harshest sanctions imposed by the US while continuing its war with Ukraine. China, meanwhile, remains engaged in a major competition with Washington over trade, influence and global leadership. Moscow and Beijing therefore had strong incentives to push BRICS towards a more explicitly anti-Western position.
Former diplomat Veena Sikri described India’s approach on Saturday as “non-West” rather than “anti-West”. She said India was “not anti-West” and instead wanted “to live as one world”.
The Delhi declaration reflected this middle ground.
5. INDIA GUIDED A DIVERSE GROUPING THROUGH A TURBULENT YEAR
The fifth achievement was perhaps the most comprehensive.
BRICS in 2026 is considerably different from the original five-member grouping. Its expansion has brought together countries with widely differing political systems, economic priorities and strategic partnerships. The challenge became even greater this year because two members were directly involved in major wars.
Russia continues to fight Ukraine, while Iran has become central to the escalating conflict involving the United States and Israel. The consequences of these conflicts have extended well beyond the battlefield, affecting energy prices, maritime trade, supply chains, food security and inflation.
Despite these competing interests, the declaration managed to accommodate different positions.
On West Asia, the document called for maximum restraint and diplomacy while acknowledging the “respective national positions” of members. On wider international conflicts, it promoted dialogue, consultation and diplomatic engagement.
Economic discussions focused heavily on resilience, development, supply chains, technology and financial cooperation.
At a time when war, economic fragmentation and rivalry between major powers threatened to deepen divisions within BRICS, New Delhi managed to facilitate consensus and secure outcomes that were important to the Global South.
India demonstrated that BRICS can continue to function despite significant disagreements among its members.
The next major test will come when China takes over the BRICS presidency for 2027 and attempts to maintain the consensus built during India’s tenure.
