Off to India, Marcos first PH leader to attend BRICS summit
MANILA, Philippines — President Ferdinand Marcos Jr. will become the first Philippine leader to attend a BRICS Summit when he travels to India this week, joining the bloc’s annual gathering in his capacity as chair of the Association of Southeast Asian Nations (Asean) for 2026.
Marcos will attend the 18th BRICS Summit in New Delhi on Sept. 12 to 13 at the invitation of Indian Prime Minister Narendra Modi, according to the spokesperson for the Department of Foreign Affairs (DFA), Assistant Secretary Annalyn Ratonel, on Wednesday.
Manila sees the summit as a strategic opportunity to engage the major economies making up BRICS, which account for a major share of global output and trade.
BRICS stands for Brazil, Russia, India, China and South Africa, the core members of the group. Its expanded membership now stands at 11 after the inclusion of Egypt, Ethiopia, Indonesia, Iran, Saudi Arabia, and the United Arab Emirates.
It currently has 10 partner countries: Belarus, Bolivia, Kazakhstan, Cuba, Malaysia, Nigeria, Thailand, Uganda, Uzbekistan and Vietnam.
The first BRICS Summit was held in 2009. Altogether, the grouping accounts for 49.5 percent of the world population, 40 percent of the global gross domestic product, and 26 percent of international trade.
BRICS is largely seen as offering emerging economies an alternative to Western-dominated alliances or institutions.
“Building a dialogue between Asean led by the Philippines and BRICS led by India could create significant geopolitical and economic support,” Ratonel said on Wednesday.
“This can create synergies between the priorities of Asean and BRICS that can lead to economic opportunities, trade diversification, regional security, and support for climate resilience,” she added.
According to the DFA, while Manila’s engagement with BRICS would be anchored on Asean centrality, “we recognize the value of working alongside international partners to address pressing global issues and challenges.”
The president will be accompanied at the summit by first lady Liza Araneta-Marcos, as well as Foreign Secretary Maria Theresa Lazaro, Information and Communications Technology Secretary Henry Aguda, and Finance Secretary Frederick Go.
He is scheduled to meet with Indian business leaders to strengthen economic relations and follow up on commitments made by Indian companies during his visit to India in August last year.
Following that trip, Marcos announced $5.8 billion worth of investment pledges from Indian companies covering technology, health, energy, and infrastructure.
Marcos is also scheduled to have a bilateral meeting with Modi to discuss the Philippines-India Strategic Partnership and review the implementation of the two countries’ Five-Year Plan of Action for 2025 to 2029.
Trade and investment, agriculture, climate change, defense and security, and science and technology are among the areas that could be discussed, Ratonel said.
Asked whether possible Philippine membership in the bloc would be discussed as well, Ratonel said the matter would require “further study” but that the country would continue to monitor developments and engage with BRICS when appropriate.
“We would also follow the experiences of our fellow Asean countries that are members (or partners) of BRICS,” he said, apparently referring to Indonesia, Vietnam, Malaysia and Thailand. /cb /atm
