The 17th annual BRICS summit officially opened in Rio de Janeiro this week under Brazil’s rotating presidency, bringing together over 4,000 participants from 37 countries. The summit has drawn senior officials, diplomats, and representatives from international organizations to deliberate on a wide range of pressing global issues, signaling the bloc’s growing influence on the world stage.

Founded in 2009 by Brazil, Russia, India, and China-with South Africa joining in 2011-BRICS has undergone significant expansion in recent years. In 2024, the bloc welcomed five new full members: Iran, Egypt, Ethiopia, the United Arab Emirates, and Indonesia. This enlargement, along with the approval of a new “partner country” status at last year’s summit in Kazan, Russia, has transformed BRICS into a formidable alliance. The group now represents nearly half of the global population and around 40% of the world’s GDP in purchasing power parity, surpassing the G7 in economic scale.

Under the theme “Strengthening Multilateralism, Economic-Financial Affairs, and Artificial Intelligence,” the Rio summit comes at a pivotal moment when the post-pandemic global order faces persistent geopolitical rifts, financial instability, and technological upheaval. Brazil has outlined six core priorities for this year’s summit: global health cooperation; trade, investment, and finance; climate change; AI governance; multilateral peace and security reform; and internal BRICS institutional development.

Speaking ahead of the summit, Brazilian officials emphasized the importance........

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