BRICS summit in New Delhi faces a difficult search for common ground

New Delhi has been placed under heavy security as leaders of 11 BRICS countries prepare to meet here this weekend, with thousands of personnel deployed around the summit.

India will host China, Russia, Brazil, South Africa, the UAE and Iran, among others, while Saudi Arabia is expected as an invited member. Prime Minister Narendra Modi is due to hold bilateral meetings with Chinese President Xi Jinping and Russian President Vladimir Putin alongside the September 12–13 gathering. Delhi is hosting the summit amid a wider diplomatic push to position India as a voice for developing countries; the leaders’ arrival and summit schedule have already brought high-level security arrangements to the capital.

A statement may be hard to secure

The central task for India will be finding common language on the Iran war, relations with the US and global trade. Russia and Iran may press for a stronger response to Washington, while India is reported to be nearing a trade deal with the US. The UAE, which hosts US military bases and has faced Iranian attacks during Tehran’s retaliation against US and Israeli strikes, has different priorities again.

That mix makes a joint declaration far from straightforward. BRICS foreign ministers failed to agree on one in May because of differences over the Iran war, leaving India to issue a chair’s summary. The bloc’s internal fault lines were also flagged ahead of the New Delhi meeting in recent discussion of the summit’s divisions.

Finance and bilateral meetings

Leaders are expected to discuss making cross-border payments in local currencies easier, a subject of particular interest to Russia and Iran, which face US sanctions. The group may also consider ways to strengthen financial cooperation, alongside its calls for reform at institutions including the UN, IMF and World Bank.

BRICS now accounts for 49% of the world’s population, 40% of global GDP and 26% of international trade. Its existing New Development Bank has approved billions of dollars in infrastructure and development projects, while its $100 billion contingency reserve arrangement has not yet been tested.

For Delhi, the immediate diplomatic measure will be whether the host can bring the group to a consensus statement while also securing substantive announcements. Modi’s meetings with Xi and Putin are expected to draw close attention, with India’s trade deficit with both countries likely to feature in those discussions.