BRICS negotiators work late into evening to find consensus for ‘Delhi Declaration’

You don’t have any Active Subscription.

Account subscription benefits alongside Premium Stories, Editorials, Opinions and more. Unlock these with Subscription

Form L-R: Iran President Masoud Pezeshkian, Prime Minister Narendra Modi, Russia’s President Vladimir Putin, and South Africa President Cyril Ramaphosa, at the BRICS Business Forum 2026 on September 11, 2026. Photo: Special Arrangement

As New Delhi prepared to host the BRICS Summit of 11 emerging economies, negotiators were working late into the evening on Friday (September 11, 2026) to forge a consensus for the “Delhi Declaration”.

Diplomatic sources and officials said that all member countries had agreed to “almost all the text, with the exception of one paragraph”, indicating that the references to the war in Iran started by the U.S. and Israel, and Iran’s attacks on installations in the United Arab Emirates (UAE) and other West Asian countries, had still not been resolved.

Both Iran and the UAE are members of the BRICS grouping and were inducted in 2024. Their tensions have held up a joint statement at all BRICS ministerial meetings this year, and at the crucial meeting of Foreign Ministers in mid-May, External Affairs Minister S. Jaishankar issued a “Chair’s Summary” instead.

“We continue to engage on [the] Outcome Document”, an official privy to the negotiations told The Hindu on Friday, while others said they remained hopeful of a breakthrough, as India was able to do in 2023 by forging a joint statement at the G-20 Summit after the Russian war in Ukraine had divided members.

In the current series of negotiations, Iran has been pitching for a clear condemnation of the U.S. and Israel’s actions, and the UAE wants “equal condemnation” of Iran’s actions, a diplomat told The Hindu. However, Iran has contested this in Sherpa meetings, insisting that it would be akin to Iran criticising itself. Tehran has contended that its attacks on the Gulf region were in “self-defence”, limited to U.S. military and ancillary installations, the sources said. 

The top leaders of eight BRICS countries, including Russia, India, China, Egypt, Ethiopia, South Africa, Indonesia and Iran, will meet around the table at the Bharat Mandapam complex in New Delhi on Saturday afternoon for the first time since the Iran war began. Brazil heads to elections shortly, and President Lula da Silva will be represented by Foreign Minister Mauro Vieira, while UAE President and Ruler of Abu Dhabi Mohamed Bin Zayed Al Nahyan (MbZ), who is visiting Germany at present, will be represented by his son, the Crown Prince of Abu Dhabi Khaled bin Mohamed bin Zayed Al Nahyan. Saudi Arabia, which was granted BRICS membership in 2024 but has yet to join formally, has sent Foreign Minister Farhan bin Saud. 

On Friday, Prime Minister Narendra Modi is understood to have stressed the importance of a joint statement from the BRICS coalition in each of his bilateral talks, including with Iranian President Masoud Pezeshkian as well as Russian President Vladimir Putin, who, as a strong ally of the Iranian government, has considerable sway with Tehran.

All eyes will also be on Mr. Modi’s meeting with the UAE Crown Prince on Saturday morning, before the joint session. Diplomatic insiders say the decision by the UAE President to send his son, not a minister, is an indication of the importance of the Summit being hosted by India.

The government’s outreach to President Pezeshkian was apparent from the moment he landed, with a red-carpet welcome accorded to him. Mr. Modi was seen personally leading Mr. Pezeshkian at the BRICS Business event, while holding his hand firmly. On Saturday, according to an advisory by the External Affairs Ministry, Mr. Pezeshkian will be the only BRICS leader to meet President Draupadi Murmu as well. 

The BRICS grouping has been particularly affected by the war in Iran that was started by the U.S. and Israel’s attacks and the assassination of Iran’s Supreme Leader Ali Khamenei on February 28, 2026. Apart from Iran and the UAE, which has been targeted repeatedly by Iranian drone and missile strikes, other members of BRICS have been severely hit by the economic disruptions caused by the war, the closure of the Strait of Hormuz for cargo trade traffic, as well as rising energy prices and availability issues. 

“In the backdrop of geopolitical tensions and geoeconomic uncertainties, the participation of all these leaders in the 18th BRICS Summit in New Delhi is a reiteration of their collective confidence and commitment to BRICS,” said former Secretary for Multilateral and Economic Relations Dammu Ravi, who ran many of the negotiations for BRICS and other groupings in the Ministry of External Affairs. “It’s an excellent opportunity for India to put focus on finding solutions to the challenges of an aspiring global south, in a trilateral framework by combining each other’s strengths,” he added.

The main session of BRICS leaders will be held on Saturday afternoon around the theme of “Global Governance and Strengthening Multilateralism”. United Nations Secretary-General António Guterres, who met with Mr. Modi on Friday evening, will also be present for the session.

Mr. Modi and other BRICS leaders will attend an exhibition showcasing Indian innovation and will take part in a “joint tree plantation” ceremony, the Ministry said. This is the fourth time that India is hosting the BRICS Summit, after 2012 in Delhi, 2016 in Goa and 2021 virtually.

Comments have to be in English, and in full sentences. They cannot be abusive or personal. Please abide by our community guidelines for posting your comments.

We have migrated to a new commenting platform. If you are already a registered user of The Hindu and logged in, you may continue to engage with our articles. If you do not have an account please register and login to post comments. Users can access their older comments by logging into their accounts on Vuukle.