14:09
Suspense mounted on Saturday over whether leaders at the two-day BRICS Summit in New Delhi will reach a consensus on a joint declaration, amid sharp divisions between Iran and the UAE over the West Asia conflict, even as India works to shield the Global South from growing geopolitical turmoil.
Multiple diplomatic sources told PTI that hectic consultations are underway to arrive at a consensus on the thorny issue, but added that negotiations could go down to the wire as both Iran and the UAE harden their positions.
BRICS is a consensus-based grouping, meaning any single member can block a final joint declaration.
In a strategic balancing act, New Delhi is looking to leverage the summit to position the grouping as a complementary engine for economic growth while being mindful of sensitivities of the United States and other Western powers, especially in the trade and energy domains.
As the BRICS chair, India has placed the Global South at the heart of its agenda by seeking actionable solutions for food, energy, and supply chain security primarily to insulate the developing nations from the economic consequences of the conflicts.
The summit will be attended by Russian President Vladimir Putin, Chinese President Xi Jinping, Iranian President Masoud Pezeshkian, South African President Cyril Ramaphosa, Indonesian President Prabowo Subianto, Egyptian President Abdel Fattah El-Sisi, Malaysian Prime Minister Anwar Ibrahim, Abu Dhabi Crown Prince Mohamed bin Zayed Al Nahyan, Ethiopian Prime Minister Abiy Ahmed Ali and Vietnamese Prime Minister Le Minh Hung. Many other global leaders are also joining it.
UN Secretary General Antonio Guterres, WTO Director General Ngozi Okonjo-Iweala, WHO Chief Tedros Adhanom Ghebreyesus, New Development Bank (NDB) President Dilma Rousseff and Asian Infrastructure Investment Bank Chief Zou Jiayi will also be attending the BRICS Summit.
BRICS, originally comprising Brazil, Russia, India, China, and South Africa, expanded in 2024 to include Egypt, Ethiopia, Iran, the United Arab Emirates and Saudi Arabia, with Indonesia joining in 2025.
Belarus, Bolivia, Kazakhstan, Cuba, Malaysia, Nigeria, Thailand, Uganda, Uzbekistan and Vietnam became BRICS partner countries last year.
BRICS emerged as an influential grouping as it brings together 11 major emerging economies of the world, representing around 49.5 per cent of the global population, around 40 per cent of the global GDP and around 26 per cent of the global trade.
