Opinion | Rebuttal To P Chidambaram – What Has India Achieved? BRICS, QUAD & SCO

PM Modi's track record shows a Bharat that has used multi-alignment to expand options, attract capital and technology and project influence without sacrificing strategic autonomy

Got Question about the News?

Prime Minister Narendra Modi has pursued a foreign policy of multi-alignment and strategic autonomy, simultaneously deepened engagement in BRICS, revived and operationalised the Quadrilateral Security Dialogue (QUAD) and used the Shanghai Cooperation Organisation (SCO) to expand its Eurasian footprint. The result is not allegiance to any single camp but a web of partnerships that amplify India’s voice as a leading economy, a security provider in the Indo-Pacific and a champion of the Global South. The approach treats these groupings as complementary rather than contradictory. BRICS provides institutional alternatives in development finance and a platform for emerging-economy coordination. QUAD delivers technology, maritime domain awareness and supply-chain partnerships with the United States, Japan and Australia. SCO offers Central Asian connectivity, counter-terrorism mechanisms and a venue for managing relations with China and Russia. Under Modi, India has moved from participant to agenda-setter in all three.

India is a founding member of BRICS. Subsequent Indian chairmanships in 2016, 2021 and 2026 under Modi have given New Delhi repeated opportunities to shape the grouping’s direction. The 2016 Goa summit produced the Goa Declaration with strong language on terrorism and a call to expedite the Comprehensive Convention on International Terrorism. Leaders established a Joint Working Group on Counter-Terrorism, signed an MoU for a BRICS Agriculture Research Platform and advanced customs’ and tax cooperation. The NDB, then in its first year, was directed toward infrastructure and renewable energy. Intra-BRICS trade was targeted for doubling, and outreach with BIMSTEC was initiated.

Xi, Putin, Guterres & More: Which World Leaders Are Attending BRICS Summit In New Delhi?

India’s BRICS Moment: How New Delhi Could Turn Its 2026 Chairship Into Economic Gains

Beyond The Dollar: Why BRICS Is Rewriting The Rules Of Cross-Border Payments, And What India Gains

Trump-Xi-Putin G3 Is Not A Bloc Like BRICS Yet. So Why Is India Watching Closely?

India’s 2021 chairmanship, held virtually amid the COVID-19 pandemic under the theme “BRICS@15: Intra-BRICS Cooperation for Continuity, Consolidation and Consensus," delivered several firsts – a Digital Health Summit, the first Water Ministers’ meeting, operationalisation of the Agricultural Research Platform, the BRICS Alliance for Green Tourism and the Agreement on BRICS Remote Sensing Satellite Constellation for disaster management and climate monitoring. The Counter-Terrorism Action Plan was adopted, translating earlier strategy into operational cooperation. Over 150 events were held. India also used the platform to share digital public goods and vaccine-related experience rather than merely seek assistance.

The most tangible financial instrument remains the NDB, headquartered in Shanghai with........

© News18