An Expanded Club for the Global South
The BRICS gathering in India is the first major summit to fully integrate a wave of new members, fundamentally altering the group's scale and scope. Originally comprised of Brazil, Russia, India, China, and South Africa, the bloc has expanded to include
Egypt, Ethiopia, Iran, and the United Arab Emirates, with Indonesia joining in 2025 and Saudi Arabia also being treated as a member. This expansion means the group now represents nearly half of the world's population and around 40% of the global economy. The preparations in New Delhi are centered on transforming this increased demographic and economic weight into a cohesive voice for the 'Global South.' The core idea is to create a powerful platform that champions the developmental priorities and aspirations of emerging economies, moving beyond the traditional dominance of Western-led institutions.
The Push for Financial Autonomy
A central theme dominating the summit’s preparations is the move toward greater financial independence, often termed 'de-dollarization.' This is not about creating a single BRICS currency, an idea that has faced significant hurdles. Instead, the focus is on a more practical goal: building alternative financial infrastructure to reduce reliance on the US dollar for international trade. The headline initiative is BRICS Pay, a system designed to connect the national payment networks of member countries, such as India's Unified Payments Interface (UPI) and Russia's Faster Payments System. The goal is to make cross-border transactions faster, cheaper, and possible in local currencies. This financial track, supported by the bloc's New Development Bank (NDB), is a clear signal of the group’s ambition to create a multipolar financial world where developing nations are less exposed to the economic policies and sanctions of the West.
India's Delicate Balancing Act
Hosting the summit places India in a crucial but challenging position. Under its 2026 chairship theme, “Building for Resilience, Innovation, Cooperation and Sustainability,” India is tasked with steering a larger, more diverse, and at times, more divided group. A key part of India's role is to act as a diplomatic bridge. While New Delhi champions the cause of the Global South, it is also wary of the bloc adopting a purely anti-Western stance, a direction some members might favour. Navigating the complex relationship with China within the BRICS framework remains a primary strategic challenge. Indian officials are positioning the summit as an opportunity to foster consensus and ensure the bloc remains a constructive force in global governance, rather than a confrontational one. This involves balancing its own strategic autonomy with the collective ambitions of a group that includes both democratic and authoritarian states.
A Practical Agenda for a Changing World
Beyond the high-level geopolitics, the preparatory talks have focused on a tangible agenda aimed at boosting resilience among member nations. Key priorities include strengthening cooperation on food and energy security, which have become critical concerns amid global supply chain disruptions. There is also a strong emphasis on building more robust supply chains within the BRICS network to reduce dependency on other economic powers. Discussions have also covered collaboration in healthcare, disaster response, and technology. For India, the summit is also an economic opportunity to boost its own trade and exports with member countries, particularly as it currently runs a trade deficit with several of them. These practical concerns form the bedrock of the summit, grounding the bloc's grand ambitions in real-world issues that directly affect its nearly four billion citizens.
