New Delhi hosts the group’s summit in the year of its 20th anniversary
The 18th BRICS Summit has begun in New Delhi. The main events will take place on 12–13 September at the Bharat Mandapam convention centre. India is chairing the group in 2026 under the theme “Building for Resilience, Innovation, Cooperation and Sustainability”.
The high-level meeting will be attended by Russian President Vladimir Putin, President of China Xi Jinping, South African President Cyril Ramaphosa, Iranian President Masoud Pezeshkian, Indonesian President Prabowo Subianto, Egyptian President Abdel Fattah El-Sisi, Ethiopian Prime Minister Abiy Ahmed, Crown Prince of Abu Dhabi Khaled bin Mohamed bin Zayed Al Nahyan, and Brazilian Foreign Minister Mauro Vieira.
Nine BRICS partner countries will also take part in the Summit: Belarus, Vietnam, Kazakhstan, Cuba, Malaysia, Nigeria, Thailand, Uganda and Uzbekistan. In addition, the invited countries include Burundi, the Philippines, Bahrain, Saudi Arabia and Uruguay.
On Saturday, 12 September, the leaders of BRICS member countries will hold a closed-door session dedicated to inclusive global governance and strengthening multilateralism. The New Delhi Declaration, the Summit’s main document, is expected to be adopted at the meeting. The leaders will then visit the Bharat Innovates 2026 exhibition. A gala dinner with a cultural programme will be held in the evening.
On Sunday, 13 September, partner countries and invited delegations will join the proceedings. The main session, “Resilience, Innovation, Cooperation and Sustainability: Shaping the Future for Inclusive Global Growth”, will open.
Earlier, responding to a question from a TV BRICS reporter, Official Spokesperson of India’s Ministry of External Affairs Randhir Jaiswal noted that India’s approach to BRICS is focused on development and people’s interests. “We seek to strengthen cooperation between countries. We view BRICS as a group that complements other formats of international cooperation. Our task is to bring people and states together. Today, this is particularly important,” he added.
India’s partners within the group share the same approach. Speaker of the National Assembly of South Africa Thokozile Didiza said in an exclusive interview with TV BRICS that she sees the main task of BRICS as bringing people together.
“Our approach is focused on development, on people’s interests and on how we can strengthen cooperation together. We view BRICS as a complementary group. Our goal is to bring all participants together and establish interaction between them,” she added.
The BRICS Chairship passed from Brazil to India on 1 January 2026. The logo features a lotus whose petals are coloured in the colours of the grouping’s countries. They symbolise many voices united by a common purpose. At the centre of the emblem is the traditional Indian greeting gesture “namaste”, signifying respect and a call for cooperation, according to the website of India’s Chairship.
African Times published this article in partnership with International Media Network TV BRICS
