India hosts the BRICS summit in New Delhi as tensions between Iran and the UAE threaten the bloc’s unity, with leaders seeking a joint declaration on the Middle East crisis amid geopolitical rivalries and economic ambitions.
The BRICS summit in New Delhi, scheduled for September 12-13, 2026, has become a battleground for the bloc’s ability to challenge Western dominance, as divisions between Iran and the UAE over the U.S.-led war on Iran risk derailing consensus. Russian President Vladimir Putin, Chinese President Xi Jinping, and Indian Prime Minister Narendra Modi are among the leaders attending, while the UAE and Iran, both BRICS members, remain at odds over the conflict in the Strait of Hormuz, a critical oil trade chokepoint.
The Summit’s Divisions
The summit faces immediate challenges as the UAE, which suspended trade with Iran in August following attacks by Iranian missiles, clashes with Tehran over the U.S.-Israeli military campaign against Iran. Russian presidential spokesman Dmitry Peskov acknowledged the negative impact
of these differences, stating they hindered the drafting of a joint declaration. However, hopes remain that leaders can find acceptable language to address the crisis, as seen in the recent Shanghai Cooperation Organisation (SCO) summit, where members agreed on a formulation acceptable to all sides.
Michael Kugelman, a senior fellow at the Atlantic Council, highlighted the irony of BRICS’s expansion: The very expansion, because of the divergent views of the new members, could make the group less effective.
New members like Iran and the UAE, along with Egypt and Ethiopia, bring conflicting interests, complicating the bloc’s consensus-driven approach. Despite this, Rajiv Bhatia noted progress from the SCO summit, where there has been a significant forward movement
in reconciling differing positions.
BRICS’s Global Ambitions
BRICS, initially formed by Brazil, Russia, India, and China, has expanded to include Egypt, Ethiopia, Iran, the UAE, and Indonesia, positioning itself as a counterweight to Western institutions.
Analysts like Sean Burges of Carleton University argue that BRICS’s success should not be measured by whether it can pose an alternative to West-led institutions, but by whether it makes Western dominance harder to exercise. Its mere existence is a much more important platform for Global South countries to express their voices and bypass the West in cooperation,
Burges said, citing examples like China’s development assistance and Brazil’s currency swaps. However, the bloc’s economic influence remains limited, with the U.S. dollar still dominating global trade, and its political coherence undermined by member-state disagreements.
The Role of Key Players
At the same time, China’s participation, marked by President Xi Jinping’s attendance, signals Beijing’s commitment to expanding BRICS as a counterbalance to U.S. economic policies.
India, as host, faces the delicate task of mediating between Iran and the UAE. Prime Minister Narendra Modi has sought to elevate BRICS’s profile, but the bloc’s internal tensions threaten to overshadow its ambitions. The summit’s outcome will hinge on whether leaders can reconcile differences over the Middle East crisis and align on economic initiatives, such as the proposed BRICS development bank and currency swap agreements.
The immediate test for BRICS is producing a joint declaration on the Iran-UAE conflict, a task complicated by the bloc’s expanding membership and divergent interests. While the SCO summit offered a model for compromise, the absence of the UAE in that agreement raises questions about BRICS’s ability to bridge divides. Analysts suggest that the bloc’s long-term effectiveness will depend on its capacity to balance economic cooperation with political unity, a challenge that has defined its history.
Looking ahead, the summit’s success or failure will shape BRICS’s role in global governance. If leaders can navigate the current tensions, the bloc may strengthen its position as a multipolar alternative to Western institutions. However, without consensus on key issues, BRICS risks remaining a symbolic coalition rather than a transformative force in world politics.
