The success of India’s BRICS presidency should not be measured merely by the adoption of the New Delhi Declaration. Declarations are important diplomatic instruments, but their real value lies in what they enable beyond the conference hall. For India, the larger dividend of its BRICS leadership lies in diplomacy, security, bilateral engagement, economic opportunities, institutional reform and, importantly, in strengthening its voice in shaping the emerging international order.

India assumed the BRICS chair at a particularly turbulent moment. The international system is witnessing geopolitical rivalry, wars, protectionism, sanctions, fragmented supply chains, technological competition and growing dissatisfaction with the existing architecture of global governance. Against this backdrop, New Delhi had the difficult task of keeping an increasingly diverse BRICS together while ensuring that India’s own strategic and developmental interests remained firmly on the agenda.

The outcome, therefore, needs to be assessed on a wider canvas than the summit declaration.A significant diplomatic gainOne of the most important gains for India is the continuing effort to place terrorism firmly at the centre of the BRICS security agenda.The condemnation of the 22 April 2025 Pahalgam terrorist attack in Jammu & Kashmir at the BRICS level was particularly significant. India had argued that condemnation of terrorism must be a matter of principle, not diplomatic convenience. The BRICS consensus gave political weight to that position. For New Delhi, this is more than a symbolic statement. Cross-border terrorism affecting Jammu & Kashmir has long been one of India’s central security concerns. India has consistently maintained that terrorism cannot be compartmentalised according to political convenience and that there can be no distinction between “good” and “bad” terrorism.

The significance of raising the issue in BRICS is that India’s security concerns are thereby located within the larger international struggle against terrorism rather than treated merely as a bilateral India-Pakistan issue.The next step must be practical. BRICS cooperation should produce stronger mechanisms against terrorist financing, recruitment, radicalisation, safe havens and terrorist networks. India should continue to press for international accountability of those who sponsor, facilitate or finance terrorism.The Pahalgam reference thus represents an important diplomatic gain—but its real value will depend upon whether political condemnation evolves into sustained multilateral action.

An institutional legacyPerhaps the most consequential institutional idea associated with India’s presidency is the strengthening of the BRICS Troika—the previous, current and incoming presidencies.BRICS has grown substantially in membership and ambition. Its agenda now covers political and security cooperation, trade, finance, technology, health, agriculture, climate, energy and people-to-people relations. Such expansion makes continuity increasingly important.The annual change of chairmanship can otherwise produce discontinuity. An initiative launched by one presidency may lose momentum under the next. A stronger Troika can preserve institutional memory, coordinate priorities and ensure that important initiatives survive changes in leadership.For India, the strategic advantage is obvious. New Delhi’s influence need not end when its chairmanship ends. It can continue to participate in the........

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