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BRICS Summit Opens in New Delhi as Iran War Tests Bloc's Unity
(MENAFN) New Delhi becomes the epicenter of high-stakes diplomacy this weekend as BRICS leaders convene amid overlapping global conflicts, with the US-Iran war poised to strain cohesion within the expanding non-Western bloc.
The war has pitted BRICS member Iran directly against Washington, even as other bloc members maintain sharply differing relationships with each side — tension that will hang over the two-day BRICS Leaders' Summit Saturday and Sunday, where Indian Prime Minister Narendra Modi hosts Chinese President Xi Jinping, Russian President Vladimir Putin and Iranian President Masoud Pezeshkian, among other heads of state.
The summit arrives at a "time of belligerent actions as well as great flux in the international order and international life," Sourabh Gupta of the Institute for China-America Studies told media.
He said the Iran war, the Russia-Ukraine conflict, global trade disputes and emerging issues like artificial intelligence and blockchain payments will all likely feature heavily on the agenda, with the West watching closely.
British political analyst Martin Jacques said BRICS' expansion has made the bloc "more important" amid the current geopolitical turbulence. Originally formed by Brazil, Russia, India, China and South Africa, the group expanded in January 2024 to add Egypt, Ethiopia, Iran, Saudi Arabia and the UAE, followed by Indonesia in January 2025 — bringing full membership to 11. Belarus, Bolivia, Kazakhstan, Cuba, Malaysia, Nigeria, Thailand, Uganda, Uzbekistan and Vietnam joined as partner countries in 2025.
Jacques told media the bloc's growing weight also stems from President Donald Trump and "the widespread antipathy in the Global South for Trump and his policies."
The summit comes less than two weeks ahead of the UN General Assembly's high-level week and Xi's expected September 24 meeting with Trump.
The war has pitted BRICS member Iran directly against Washington, even as other bloc members maintain sharply differing relationships with each side — tension that will hang over the two-day BRICS Leaders' Summit Saturday and Sunday, where Indian Prime Minister Narendra Modi hosts Chinese President Xi Jinping, Russian President Vladimir Putin and Iranian President Masoud Pezeshkian, among other heads of state.
The summit arrives at a "time of belligerent actions as well as great flux in the international order and international life," Sourabh Gupta of the Institute for China-America Studies told media.
He said the Iran war, the Russia-Ukraine conflict, global trade disputes and emerging issues like artificial intelligence and blockchain payments will all likely feature heavily on the agenda, with the West watching closely.
British political analyst Martin Jacques said BRICS' expansion has made the bloc "more important" amid the current geopolitical turbulence. Originally formed by Brazil, Russia, India, China and South Africa, the group expanded in January 2024 to add Egypt, Ethiopia, Iran, Saudi Arabia and the UAE, followed by Indonesia in January 2025 — bringing full membership to 11. Belarus, Bolivia, Kazakhstan, Cuba, Malaysia, Nigeria, Thailand, Uganda, Uzbekistan and Vietnam joined as partner countries in 2025.
Jacques told media the bloc's growing weight also stems from President Donald Trump and "the widespread antipathy in the Global South for Trump and his policies."
The summit comes less than two weeks ahead of the UN General Assembly's high-level week and Xi's expected September 24 meeting with Trump.
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