中文
By Rabi Sankar Bosu
India concluded its BRICS presidency at the 18th annual summit, held in New Delhi on Sept. 12-13, where leaders of the expanding group adopted a 140-point declaration spanning counterterrorism, climate action and a shared framework for AI governance.
India assumed the BRICS presidency from Brazil on Jan. 1, 2026, and hosted the 18th annual BRICS summit at Bharat Mandapam in New Delhi on Sept. 12-13 as chair of the influential group.
The grouping, originally comprising four major emerging economies — Brazil, Russia, India, China — has expanded into a larger family. Indian Prime Minister Narendra Modi hosted Chinese President Xi Jinping, Russian President Vladimir Putin, South African President Cyril Ramaphosa, Iranian President Masoud Pezeshkian and other world leaders at the annual gathering.
The summit sought to channel the growing economic and political weight of BRICS into a demand for a more just and equitable global order. In essence, it echoed the growing voice of the Global South. A primary goal was to counter unilateralism and to enable countries to deepen their economic and trade relations while preserving their strategic autonomy.
Why BRICS matters to its peoples
Since its first summit in Russia in 2009, BRICS has transformed from a grouping of four into a coalition of 11 nations across four continents. Today, the grouping represents 49.5% of humanity, 40% of global GDP and 26% of world trade, according to Indian official sources. In purchasing power parity terms, IMF figures for 2025 put BRICS at about 40.5% of global output, compared with 28.3% for the G7. More than half of global growth in the last five years has come from BRICS, while G7 contributed just 18%.
These are not merely statistics. With nearly 4 billion people, BRICS is the largest platform for South-South cooperation the world has ever seen. The IMF projects BRICS will grow 3.7% in 2026, more than three times the G7's 1.2%. As Nobel laureate Michael Spence predicted, BRICS is set to replace the U.S. and Europe as the key engine of the world economy.
What makes BRICS enduring is that it is not just a club of governments — it is a vehicle for its peoples. Modi captured this when he noted that BRICS "has established a distinct identity on the global stage and the grouping is not against anyone."
Xi highlighted the larger historic role when he said, "the mechanism has become the world's most influential platform for cooperation among emerging markets and developing countries." He has often stressed that BRICS must speak for fairness, saying BRICS should work toward a more just and equitable global governance system and champion true multilateralism over bloc confrontation.
In its third "golden decade," BRICS will carry the expectations not just of its 11 members but of the entire Global South for a more balanced, inclusive world order.
A new foundation for the Global South
The Delhi summit's message was unambiguous: the Global South must move from the margins of decision-making to the forefront of policymaking. Modi highlighted this imbalance by noting that while the Global South bears the brunt of global crises, it remains excluded from the core of global decision-making.
Xi's remarks provided the historical and moral anchor for this shift. As he noted, "Hand in hand we tackled the global financial crisis, COVID pandemic, climate change and other challenges, and we resolutely defended the common interests of the Global South, providing the world with stability and positive energy."
Modi's acknowledgment of China's "support and cooperation" went beyond diplomatic courtesy. It signaled that stable China-India coordination remains vital for BRICS cohesion. By emphasizing pragmatic innovation over confrontation, both China and India have helped sustain BRICS as an important platform for South-South cooperation.
Delhi's innovation agenda
India's 2026 presidency rightly placed technology at the center, with a focus on artificial intelligence, digital public infrastructure and fintech.
The New Delhi Declaration signals a decisive shift from grand geopolitical narratives to pragmatic innovation. The Delhi outcome presents a clear action list: a shared framework for AI governance, interoperability of digital public infrastructure, cooperation on quantum technology, a BRICS startup and entrepreneurship network and stronger linkages for small- and medium-sized enterprises. It marks a transition from what BRICS opposes to what it will build together.
Most noteworthy is the declaration’s technology-first, politically low-key approach to financial cooperation. While committing to payment system interoperability and expanded local currency settlement, it deliberately avoids provocative rhetoric on de-dollarization, noting that "there is no one-size-fits-all solution." This is smart: make capital flows faster and cheaper first, rather than inviting premature confrontation.
Modi's assurance on Sept. 12 that "BRICS is not targeting anyone" provides essential political legitimacy for this gradualism, while the phrase "sovereign and self-reliant digital ecosystem" acknowledges divergent views on digital sovereignty.
Paragraph 22 of the New Delhi Declaration unanimously condemned unilateral coercive measures, including unilateral economic sanctions and secondary sanctions, that are contrary to international law and the Charter of the United Nations.
The summit's real value lies in concrete outcomes: an AI governance statement, a digital public infrastructure library and a renewed payments task force. The test lies in the sustainability of these deliverables, proving that BRICS can execute for an innovative future.
A new dawn for China-India ties
Six years after the Galwan Valley clash in 2020 between Chinese and Indian border troops, the meeting between Xi and Modi in New Delhi offered a gesture of thawing relations. While the border issue remains unresolved, both leaders appear to be seeking a recalibration from confrontation to managed partnership.
Xi's attendance at the Delhi summit was more than another bilateral visit. It marked a long-awaited return, seven years after Mahabalipuram near Chennai in October 2019, and only his fourth visit to India after his first bilateral visit in September 2014.
In their 50-minute meeting, the two leaders reached a clear consensus: China and India should be partners, not rivals. Xi set the tone, stating that the two countries "provide development opportunities for each other rather than pose threats to each other" and that such hard-won progress "should be cherished." Modi echoed this, affirming that India views China's development as an opportunity, not a challenge.
For the 2.8 billion people of China and India, this shift is a new dawn.
Thicker than glue, stronger than stone
There is an ancient Chinese saying: "A partnership forged with the right approach defies geographical distance; it is thicker than glue and stronger than metal and stone."
This spirit was evident in Delhi, where on the second day of the summit, Xi proposed five initiatives for greater BRICS cooperation in AI, trade and investment facilitation, digital industry, smart manufacturing and talent development. He called for stable supply chains, integrated markets and forward-looking plans for future industries.
Such pragmatic cooperation is the bedrock for pursuing development and shared prosperity in an era of global integration. In Delhi, despite political differences and diverse national conditions, BRICS leaders spoke with a common voice for multilateralism and an open world economy, ensuring that BRICS cooperation benefits not only the peoples of member states but all of humanity.
The hope now is that BRICS countries will continue to work together to achieve a new "golden decade" of cooperation that is fair, open and innovative for the welfare of humankind.
Rabi Sankar Bosu is founder and president of New Horizon Radio Listeners' Club, an independent Sino-Indian friendship club based in West Bengal, India. He is a senior Indian analyst and commentator on global affairs, particularly on China's development, China-India relations and the Belt and Road Initiative.
