The 18th BRICS summit was held in New Delhi on September 12-13. Conceived by Goldman Sachs in 2001, BRIC consisting of Brazil, Russia, India and China was formally launched in 2009. South Africa was added in 2010, transforming it into BRICS. Its creation was partly in a response to the financial crisis of 2008-09. BRICS has ten full members and ten partner countries. Saudi Arabia was invited to join the bloc, but has neither formally accepted nor rejected the invitation. It was expanded in 2024. BRICS currently has ten full members. The five newer members are Egypt, Ethiopia, Indonesia, Iran, and the United Arab Emirates, and ten partner countries include Belarus, Bolivia, Cuba, Kazakhstan, Malaysia, Nigeria, Thailand, Uganda, Uzbekistan, and Vietnam. Expansion has given BRICS a greater economic and diplomatic weight. However, diverse membership also brings contentious geopolitical issues on the table, making it difficult to reach consensus. Together, these countries represent half of the world population, approximately 4.5 billion people, and 40% of the global GDP. China accounts for a large portion of this total.
The BRICS is a Global South–led organization. Key issues in the summit discussions included the Middle East conflict, global trade, economic cooperation and financial connectivity. The Financial Times reported that several BRICS countries have already developed domestic payment systems based on their national currencies. These countries are now exploring ways to connect their systems to those of other nations, thereby encouraging international transactions without using the U.S. dollar. BRICS members share significant economic interests, but they also have divergent strategic priorities, which are likely to constrain cooperation. Glaring among the contentious issues is the US-Israel war involving Iran. Iran and the United Arab Emirates are both BRICS members, but the UAE maintains close relationships with the United States and Israel.
Another important watch within the BRICS is the relationship between China and India. Both countries are founding members of the organization, and the world’s two largest developing countries with about 40% of the world’s population. Chinese President Xi Jinping’s attendance at the New Delhi summit was especially significant because it was his first visit to India in seven years. Indian Prime Minister Narendra Modi’s trip to China for the Shanghai Cooperation Organization (SCO) Summit last year was also the first in seven years. Established in 2001, the SCO summit marked its twenty-fifth anniversary in Bishkek, Kyrgyzstan.
In 2020, China and India had border clashes in June 2020- the first in 45 years. They reached an agreement concerning the border in 2024 on the sidelines of the BRICS summit in Kazan, Russia.Russian President Vladimir Putin reportedly helped mediate between China and India because Russia maintains close relations with both the countries. The 2024 summit in Kazan was important not only because India and China made progress on their border disagreement but also because BRICS continued its institutional expansion.
It seems the US has unintentionally encouraged China, India, and Russia to cooperate more closely, as President Donald Trump imposed 50% tariffs as a part of America First policy. India has worked to maintain ties with Washington, Beijing and Moscow and calls it a “strategic autonomy.” New Delhi has no intention of countering the US. It is assumed that even China and Russia want to avoid turning BRICS into a vehicle for direct confrontation with Washington. Brazil and Indonesia reportedly favor greater representation for developing countries and more economic options without aligning the BRICS too closely with either Russia or China.
BRICS and the Dollar Dominated Financial System
At the New Delhi summit, BRICS members discussed connecting their domestic payment systems and expanding the use of national currencies in international trade. Reuters reported that India proposed linking central bank digital currencies across BRICS countries to facilitate cross-border payments. Such a system could allow BRICS members to conduct transactions without depending on the Society for Worldwide Interbank Financial Telecommunication, commonly known as SWIFT. India and Russia have been working to expand trade settlement in rupees and rubles. China and Brazil promote settlement in Yuan and reais. They have discussed strengthening financial connectivity between them. When BRICS was established in 2009, one of its stated ambitions was to support a more diversified international monetary system. India and Brazil have developed successful government-supported payment systems. India’s system is called the Unified Payments Interface, or UPI, while Brazil’s system is called Pix.
Chinese Prez Xi presses for expansion of BRICS by including oth...
These systems reduce dependence on the dollar and the broader U.S.-dominated financial structure. BRICS countries are therefore gradually constructing alternative financial infrastructure. Progress toward this objective was initially slow, but recent geopolitical events have accelerated the process. Tariff threats against China, Brazil, India, and other countries have provided an additional incentive. Intra-BRICS trade is relatively limited. But if financial connectivity is enhanced, it would eventually boost commercial incentives for a more integrated bloc wide payment system. Russia favors rapid de-dollarization, while India has adopted a more cautious approach.India does not currently support directly replacing the dollar with a single BRICS currency. India does not wish to provoke the United States unnecessarily.
The US, India and China
Former US President Barack Obama during his visit to Australia in 2011, floated plan of “pivot to Asia” later renamed as the rebalance. It was taken as an effort to contain China’s rise. The term Indo-Pacific became increasingly common because it emphasized India’s importance within this geopolitical framework. The first Trump administration continued the policy of drawing India closer to the United States. Trump and Modi maintained a highly visible relationship, exemplified by the large Howdy Modi rally held in Texas, and Namaste Trump in Ahmadabad. The Biden administration also strengthened relations with India and revived the Quadrilateral Security Dialogue, commonly called the Quad, which consisted of the United States, India, Japan, and Australia. Some observers describe it as an Asian NATO because its strategic purpose is widely understood to include balancing China’s influence. For several years, this strategy appeared to be working as India moved closer to the United States.
Under Modi, India has also accelerated a close relationship with Israel under the Congress government. The Congress–led government in India played an important role in establishing the Non-Aligned Movement. Congress politicians have criticized Modi for embracing Israel and moving India closer to Western powers. Modi and Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu have frequently expressed support for one another. It appears that the BJP has viewed some aspects of Israel’s political system and national identity as a possible model for India.
Though, Indian PM was an early guest during Trump’s second term, U.S. policy toward India changed substantially. Tariffs, hostile rhetoric, and other contentious actions including the Trump administration’s role in brokering a ceasefire in the May 2025 India-Pakistan conflict have prompted the Modi government to pursue a more independent foreign policy. An opinion article published by Al Jazeera described Trump as potentially BRICS’s most effective recruitment agent. According to this argument, American pressure has unintentionally encouraged India to improve its relations with China and Russia.Modi met with Xi Jinping, Vladimir Putin, and other BRICS leaders. Putin called for stronger relations between Russia and India as a response to Western sanctions and military pressure.
During the Cold War, Congress-led Indian governments developed strong diplomatic, defense, and economic ties with the then Soviet Union. And that continued for decades particularly in trade, defense, and energy. Economic ties expanded further after Western countries imposed extensive sanctions on Russia following its invasion of Ukraine in February 2022. Western governments attempted to reduce imports of Russian oil and natural gas and isolate Russia. Moscow responded by turning toward economic and political integration with Eurasia and the broader Global South, particularly China and India. India became one of the largest buyers of Russian oil, partly because Russia offered it at discounted prices.BRICS became an ideal forum by providing a diplomatic setting in which the two governments can negotiate their differences.
BRICS and the Global Economy
Measured at purchasing power parity, China surpasses the United States to become the world’s largest economy and represents approximately one-fifth of global GDP. India accounts for roughly 8.5 percent. Other BRICS members, including Brazil, Indonesia, Egypt, and Iran, also have large populations and significant economies. BRICS now represents a larger share of global GDP at purchasing power parity than the Group of Seven. In the early 1990s, the G7 accounted for approximately 45 percent of the world economy, while the countries that now constitute BRICS represented about 23 percent. BRICS-plus now represents approximately 45 percent of global GDP at purchasing power parity, while the G7 accounts for less than 30 percent. The BRICS share has generally increased as the G7 share has declined.
Indonesia has a large and expanding economy. It was also a founder of the Non-Aligned Movement (NAM) and continues to balance its relationships with China, Russia, India, and the United States.South Africa has long represented an important African voice within BRICS. The inclusion of Ethiopia, together with the most populous country Nigeria’s participation as a partner country, broadens Africa’s representation. Ethiopian membership is significant because the country is an emerging African power, with the continent’s second-largest population.Vietnam’s participation was also symbolically important. As Hanoi has been carefully balancing its relationships with China and the United States, it has initially hesitated to accept BRICS partnership. They all maintain independent and nonaligned foreign policy without unnecessarily provoking the United States. They all avoid exclusive alignment with either major power.Malaysia, another BRICS partner country, came to the BRICS summit. MalaysianPrime Minister Anwar Ibrahim met with Iranian President MasoudPezeshkian.In an interview with Indian media, Anwar strongly criticized the American and Israeli military actions against Iran.
India’s Balancing Act Between Iran and Israel
On the sidelines of the BRICS summit, Modi met with Iranian President Pezeshkian and issued a statement supporting stronger relations between India and Iran. This meeting did not necessarily indicate that India had shifted its support toward Iran. As the host government, India was diplomatically expected to meet the leaders of participating BRICS countries. India continues to balance its relationships with the United States and Israel.One of the most serious internal contradictions in BRICS concerns Iran and the United Arab Emirates. Both countries are full members, but the UAE is a close American ally and has normalized relations with Israel.The Wall Street Journal, citing unnamed sources, reported that the UAE had directly participated in attacks against Iran. The United States also maintains several military bases and facilities in the UAE, some of which Iran targeted in retaliation.These circumstances created considerable tension during the BRICS summit because two of the organization’s members were effectively on opposing sides.
Key Takeaways
Despite their disagreements, BRICS members succeeded in adopting a joint declaration. India played a moderating role to arrive at a consensus on conflictingissues.In 2023, New Delhi had succeeded in forging a consensus at the G20 summit. The declaration condemned unilateral aggression by one country against another but did not name the United States, Israel, or Iran. The declaration also addressed several subjects on which the members shared stronger agreement. They called for major reforms of global political and financial institutions so that developing countries could exercise greater influence.BRICS members agreed that the United Nations Security Council should be reformed to provide the Global South with greater representation. Currently, the UNSC has five permanent members with veto power largely reflecting the balance of power at the end of the Second World War.
BRICS provides a platform for Global South countries to pursue reforms in global governance and the international financial system. It is meant to provide alternatives to Western economic institutions, but maintain close ties with the West and exercise “strategic autonomy.” Its members have substantial political differences, but they also share important economic interests. BRICS has the world's fastest growing economies.
The central argument is that American wars, tariffs, sanctions, and unilateral policies have encouraged these countries to cooperate more closely. Rather than weakening BRICS, external pressure has increased the organization’s importance. The New Delhi summit demonstrated that BRICS countries can continue collaborating despite disagreements among their members. Their shared interest in national sovereignty, financial independence, institutional reform, and a more multipolar international order has brought them closer together.
The Summit has illustrated that the bloc remains effective at articulating broad positions on shared economic interests, reaching consensus on broad principles, and calling for greater cooperation on cross-border payments, technology, artificial intelligence and sustainable development. It has shown that it can avoid divisive specifics such as taking an explicit position on the Middle East conflict and criticizing US trade policies. The declaration criticizes the use of unilateral tariffs and other trade barriers, but advocates for restraint and diplomatic efforts to address the US-Israel war with Iran. However, BRICS’ divergent strategic priorities are likely to constrain cooperation on contentious geopolitical issues and translating them into concrete actions.
India-China ties happen to be the most important relations of the 21st century. Gradual improvement of India-China relations on outstanding border issues is crucial to the shaping of the Asian century of the twenty-first century. Unless India and China come together, work together, and rise together, the Asian century remains a distant dream. It is worth recalling that Halford J. Mackinder argued in his 1904 essay, “The Geographical Pivot of History” that three regions including West Asia, Southeast Asia and South Asia contain four major civilizational states-India, China, Iran and Russia making Eurasia- the fulcrum of the new global system.
BRICS has been seen as a critical vehicle to advance engagements with the global south, UN Charter, and multilateralism Nepal’s foreign policy is guided by Panchsheel, and multilateralism backed by a rules-based international order and international institutions. Nepal believes in diversifying relations with multiple actors rather than aligning with any powers. Regional cooperation is an important component of foreign policy. Nepal is committed to regional institutes such as South Asian Association for Regional Cooperation (SAARC), and multilateral forums with the United Nations at the center.
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