Editorial | Brics summit could emerge as milestone in bloc’s unity

On Sep 11, 2026

India’s public preparations for this weekend’s Brics summit in New Delhi are not to be compared with the spectacular display for the Group of 20 summit three years ago.

The low-key approach to the meeting of leaders of emerging major economies and developing countries from the Global South can be misleading. What Brics may lack in pomp it makes up for in substance, such as the landmark in relations between the world’s two most populous nations.

The occasion marks the first visit to India in close to seven years by Chinese President Xi Jinping. It includes a summit between Xi and his host, Indian Prime Minister Narendra Modi, expected on Saturday on the sidelines of the formal proceedings.

Coming less than two weeks ahead of Xi’s expected visit to the United States on September 24 for a summit with US President Donald Trump, the Xi-Modi meeting will be closely watched from Washington to Moscow. The US is India’s biggest export market while Russia is a major arms and energy supplier.

The Brics grouping was formed 20 years ago by Brazil, Russia, India and China – they were soon joined by South Africa – as a counterweight to the Group of Seven of rich, developed nations.

It has become a credible voice for the Global South, having expanded into a group spanning Asia, Africa, the Middle East and Latin America. It includes energy exporters, manufacturing powers, emerging economies and countries with sharply divergent relationships with Washington and Beijing.

The Delhi summit is ultimately a test of whether Brics can mobilise all this diversity for the common good. It has never had the clear leadership of the kind to be found, for example, in the G7, and needs to find more common ground and forge greater cooperation. That said, Brics has still achieved extraordinary development, all things considered.

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