Outlook For the 2026 BRICS Leaders’ Meeting: Summing Up India’s Presidency & Overcoming India–China Controversy

On September 12, New Delhi will host one of the year’s most long-awaited events, namely, the 18th BRICS Summit. How has India’s presidency unfolded, what can we expect from the meeting, and why have experts started discussing the seemingly impossible intersection of Indian and Chinese interests?

India’s previous chairmanships in earlier cycles have shown that New Delhi readily assumes commitment and responsibility for formulating clear development goals for the group, coordinating common positions on international issues, and using the authority of member states internationally to articulate the concerns of the developing world and propose solutions to them. The country’s leadership highly appreciates the global role of BRICS and the prospects for cooperation within this association. It has traditionally been interested in deepening partnerships among member states, deepening contacts, and coordinating positions in international political institutions. For India, interaction through BRICS mechanisms is important both with partners from the “historical five” and with new members from among the leading countries of the Global South from various continents. With the emergence and development of the BRICS and BRICS Outreach formats, India is also seeking to attract as many states of the global majority, developing economies, and regional international organizations that share its values as possible to participate in BRICS events.

During India’s 2026 chairmanship, more than 250 high‑level meetings and other events have already been held, aimed at strengthening strategic partnerships among the participants across all key areas, including politics and security, economy and finance, and cultural and humanitarian ties. Among them are efforts to expand settlements in national currencies; an increase in the number of BRICS New Development Bank member states; close contacts between industrial and trade departments; planning for the development of unified transparent technical standards for trade and innovation;........

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