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New Delhi: A “neighbouring country” of Iran’s that is a BRICS member is insisting that the bloc’s declaration condemn Tehran, Iranian deputy foreign minister for legal and international affairs Kazem Gharibabadi said on Wednesday (May 13), even as he voiced hope that the grouping would still be able to issue a common statement despite divisions over the Iran war.

Gharibabadi, who is Iran’s BRICS sherpa, was speaking to a group of Indian journalists in New Delhi ahead of the BRICS foreign ministers’ meeting on May 14-15. Iranian foreign minister Abbas Araghchi arrived in the capital late on Wednesday night to attend the gathering, which will be chaired by external affairs minister S. Jaishankar.

“There is one neighbouring country of Iran that is insisting to condemn Iran in the final declaration,” Gharibabadi said. “Iran has been aggressed [upon]. We have been attacked by the US and Israel, and now one neighbouring country of Iran is insisting to condemn Iran.”

While he didn’t name the country, UAE is the only BRICS member that borders Iran and has been struck by Iranian counterattacks on US military bases hosted on its territory during the war that began on February 28.

This is the first time that Iran publicly pointed to the reason that BRICS has not been able to reach a common position.

Gharibabadi said Iran was “in favour of having a joint declaration” because it was happening during India’s presidency. “It is not good to signal this message to the world that BRICS has been divided.”

He claimed that Iran had offered to remove language condemning the US and Israel from the text, but the unnamed country insisted that condemnation of Iran should remain even without any reference to Israel or the United States.

“If this language against Israel and the US is not in the text, but condemnation of Iran should be in the text. So, who is an obstacle?” he said. He added that no other BRICS member had requested that Iran be condemned.

India has deep strategic and economic ties with the UAE, which is its third-largest trade partner. Prime Minister Narendra Modi is scheduled to visit Abu Dhabi on May 15, the day after the BRICS meeting concludes, for talks with UAE President Mohamed bin Zayed Al Nahyan. This will be Modi’s first visit to the region since the Iran war began on February 28 with strikes by Israel and the US.

Asked whether India, as chair, had pushed for softer language on Israeli aggression in the declaration, Gharibabadi said India was “showing impartiality” and that he believed the chair would support any idea backed by all member states.

Tehran has been pressing India as BRICS chair to ensure the grouping takes a clear position on the conflict. Iranian President Masoud Pezeshkian and foreign minister Araghchi have both urged New Delhi to ensure BRICS plays a “strong” and “constructive” role in addressing the crisis.

Araghchi........

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