INDIA’S Indian Prime Minister Narendra Modi faces a test of BRICS unity as the bloc’s leaders gather in New Delhi with the escalating Middle East conflict threatening to widen divisions over security, energy and the global economy.
Bloomberg reported today that Chinese President Xi Jinping arrived in the Indian capital today for the two-day summit, joining Russian President Vladimir Putin and Iranian President Masoud Pezeshkian, hours after Saudi Arabia closed a key alternative oil pipeline following attacks blamed on Iran-backed militants.
Iran, Saudi Arabia and the United Arab Emirates are among the countries represented at the summit, alongside host India and other BRICS powers, highlighting the competing strategic and economic interests Modi must reconcile if the bloc is to produce a joint declaration.
The conflict has already sent oil prices above US$100 a barrel, raising concerns over higher inflation and import costs for major energy buyers including India and Indonesia, while oil-producing BRICS members such as Russia and the UAE stand to benefit from higher export revenues.
Pezeshkian delivered a defiant speech in New Delhi on Friday, saying the Iranian people would not surrender, underscoring the difficulty of reaching common ground on the conflict.
Still, prospects for a joint declaration have improved after negotiators narrowed differences over its wording in recent days.
A successful agreement would provide a significant show of unity as the war sends fresh shocks through the global economy.
Beyond the immediate crisis, Modi is seeking to advance a broader BRICS agenda focused on greater trade in local currencies, closer cross-border payment links and reforms to institutions including the International Monetary Fund and World Bank to give developing economies a greater voice.
The summit also offers Modi an opportunity to strengthen India’s standing as a leading voice of the Global South and demonstrate its ability to maintain ties across competing geopolitical camps.
That balancing act has become more important as relations between New Delhi and Washington have come under strain amid US President Donald Trump’s trade policies.
The summit agenda today includes a closed-door session on global governance and multilateralism, bilateral meetings and a leaders’ group photograph.
Modi has already held talks with Pezeshkian, calling for disputes to be resolved through dialogue and stressing the need to preserve regional peace, freedom of navigation and commerce, and the safety of seafarers. He also met Putin on Friday.
The expanded BRICS grouping faces other internal divisions, including the longstanding border dispute between India and China, while New Delhi has resisted efforts to turn the bloc into an anti-US grouping.
Malaysia is participating in the summit as a BRICS Partner Country, with Prime Minister Datuk Seri Anwar Ibrahim holding bilateral meetings with Modi, Putin and Pezeshkian on the sidelines. - September 12, 2026
