India hosts the BRICS leaders’ summit in New Delhi this weekend, seeking to lift the emerging bloc’s global profile. The gathering tests alliance unity as the U.S.-led war on Iran splits member states over Middle East policy and disrupts critical global oil trade through the Strait of Hormuz.
India takes center stage this weekend as it hosts the BRICS Leaders’ Summit in New Delhi on September 12-13. The high-profile gathering arrives more than six months after the United States and Israel launched military attacks against Iran, an event that reshaped geopolitics and disrupted global energy markets.
The extended conflict has triggered a virtual shutdown of the Strait of Hormuz, which stands as one of the world’s key choke points in the oil trade. That blockade pushed crude prices to over $100 a barrel, according to reporting from Reuters. Compounding regional fractures, the United Arab Emirates suspended all trade and financial transactions with Iran in August after enduring repeated Iranian missile strikes since the war began.
BRICS Expansion Meets Middle East Friction
The current summit puts the expanded bloc’s foundational rule to the test. Originally formed by Brazil, Russia, India, China, and South Africa, the alliance added Egypt, Ethiopia, Iran, the United Arab Emirates, and Indonesia to represent a broader Global South.
That growth, however, brought fierce geopolitical rivalries directly into the boardroom. Kremlin spokesman Dmitry Peskov acknowledged the diplomatic friction on Tuesday, stating that differences between the United Arab Emirates and Iran exerted a negative impact
on proceedings and complicated the drafting of a unified joint declaration.
“Some of (BRICS’) new members, Iran and the UAE, Egypt and Ethiopia are embroiled in tensions and don’t agree much. This is bad news for an entity that operates based on consensus.”
Michael Kugelman, senior fellow at the Atlantic Council, via Reuters
Kugelman also pointed out the paradox defining the bloc’s current trajectory: There is an irony here: BRICS expansion reflects its growing appeal and prominence. But that very expansion, because of the divergent views of the new members, could make the group less effective.
In May, foreign ministers failed to issue a joint statement in New Delhi due to the deep division between Tehran and Abu Dhabi.
High-Level Diplomacy and Regional Delegations
Despite the fractures, world leaders arrived in New Delhi with major strategic stakes. Chinese President Xi Jinping attended in his first visit to India in seven years, placing Beijing alongside host India at the center of efforts to hold the disparate coalition together.
Russian President Vladimir Putin, Masoud Pezeshkian, Cyril Ramaphosa, Abdel Fattah al-Sisi, and Prabowo Subianto joined the summit, alongside United Nations Secretary-General Antonio Guterres. The United Arab Emirates sent Abu Dhabi Crown Prince Sheikh Khaled bin Mohamed bin Zayed Al Nahyan, while Saudi Arabia was represented by Foreign Minister Faisal bin Farhan Al Saud, maintaining the kingdom’s ambiguous membership status.
Behind closed doors, foreign policy experts noted that Donald Trump’s protectionism and unilateral tariff policies provide a strong counter-incentive, giving member nations shared economic reasons to unify against Western sanctions and trade pressures.
Precedent at the Shanghai Cooperation Organisation
Diplomats point to recent regional meetings as a model for finding consensus. Earlier this month, the Shanghai Cooperation Organisation summit offered grounds for optimism when members agreed on acceptable diplomatic language regarding the Iran conflict.
Indian Prime Minister Narendra Modi, Xi, Putin, and Pezeshkian signed a joint declaration in Bishkek condemning the U.S.-Israeli military campaign and Western sanctions. Former Indian diplomat Rajiv Bhatia observed that there has been a significant forward movement in Bishkek, noting that despite including pro-U.S. members, the group were able to bring out a formulation which was acceptable to all sides.
Bilateral Meetings and What Lies Ahead
Beyond the plenary sessions, the summit serves as a crucial venue for bilateral talks. Prime Minister Modi is scheduled to hold discussions with Vladimir Putin, alongside anticipated meetings with Xi Jinping. A Modi-Xi encounter would mark their third direct conversation since bilateral ties began improving following an agreement to ease military tensions along their disputed Himalayan border.
The immediate test for the summit remains whether negotiators can craft a joint Middle East declaration acceptable to both Tehran and Abu Dhabi. With energy markets volatile following the expiration of the U.S.-Iran ceasefire, the outcomes from New Delhi will signal whether an expanded BRICS can overcome its internal contradictions to exert genuine global leverage.
