VOI World/ Desk
The BRICS Summit 2026 in New Delhi will open on September 12 with India seeking practical, development-oriented outcomes while navigating sharp differences among members over the West Asia conflict. The two-day summit will bring together leaders of the expanded 11-member grouping under India’s chairship.
The BRICS Summit 2026 will begin with a closed-door leaders’ session on “Inclusive Global Governance and Strengthening Multilateralism”. India is expected to focus on startups, innovation, resilient supply chains, green energy, technology and greater use of national currencies in trade. The agenda reflects New Delhi’s effort to keep BRICS centred on economic cooperation and development rather than allowing it to become primarily a geopolitical platform.
High-level bilateral meetings will add another layer to the summit. PM Modi is scheduled to meet Russian President Vladimir Putin on Friday, while Chinese President Xi Jinping is expected to visit India for the first time in seven years. Modi and Xi are also expected to hold a bilateral meeting on the sidelines, with economic ties and broader India-China relations likely to be closely watched.
However, reaching a common position among the expanded BRICS membership could prove difficult. The ongoing West Asia conflict has created divisions, particularly with Iran, the UAE and Saudi Arabia all part of the grouping. India is working with other members to find language acceptable to all sides for the New Delhi Declaration. Similar differences had prevented a joint statement after the BRICS foreign ministers’ meeting earlier this year.
For India, the summit therefore presents two parallel challenges: demonstrate that BRICS can deliver tangible cooperation on economic and development priorities, while maintaining consensus on difficult geopolitical issues. The final New Delhi Declaration will be a key test of that balancing act.
