India's BRICS presidency secured consensus, roundtable discussion notes

India's chairmanship of the 18th BRICS Summit in New Delhi secured consensus on the Delhi Declaration, participants at a Chintan Research Foundation roundtable said. Key outcomes included consensus on the 2025 Pahalgam attack, zero tolerance for terrorism and disruption of terror financing. The summit also discussed de-dollarisation, cross-border payment mechanisms and strengthening the New Development Bank. China proposed a BRICS open-source artificial intelligence community, but members expressed scepticism over the proposal.

Written by AI from BRICS / G20 / SCO / Quad · not yet reviewed by an editor · Published 20 Sept 2026, 1:33 pm IST

Source

BRICS / G20 / SCO / Quad · read the original report ↗

#brics#diplomacy#delhi declaration#global south#foreign policy

Desk check · some claims need care

What the desk checked (5)

The 18th BRICS Summit was held in New Delhi under India's chairmanship and adopted the Delhi Declaration. — Appears in source as reported fact; no external verification possible, and the source dates the summit to September 2026.
Consensus was reached on the 2025 Pahalgam attack, with a call for zero tolerance for terrorism and disruption of terror financing. — Stated in source as a summit outcome; not attributed to a specific document quote.
China proposed a BRICS open-source AI community, which members viewed with scepticism. — Stated in source without direct attribution to a named speaker.
Prime Minister Narendra Modi asked the 11-member bloc to work on 10 global governance reform proposals to form a BRICS Reform Roadmap. — Attributed in source to the keynote address by MEA Joint Secretary Shambhu L. Hakki; no quote provided.
The Chintan Research Foundation held a roundtable in New Delhi on 16 September 2026 on lessons from the summit. — Specific date and organiser named in source; date is in the future relative to normal news cycles and should be checked.

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Analysts’ view opinion

AI Political Analyst

India's BRICS presidency looks set to become a political asset, reinforcing its image as a grouping that New Delhi can hold together — and securing BRICS language on the Pahalgam attack and terror financing hands the government a strong talking point at home. At the same time, the unresolved questions on de-dollarisation and the absence of a common currency, plus the scepticism towards China's proposal, expose the internal contest over who sets the bloc's direction. Steering BRICS away from an explicitly anti-West posture towards the centre fits India's wider multi-alignment balancing act. This, however, is the reading of a roundtable of experts; implementation still lies ahead.

Consensus on the Pahalgam attack and zero tolerance for terrorism is the outcome the government can most readily present as a diplomatic win on a multilateral stage.
Member scepticism towards China's proposed open-source AI community signals a quiet contest over who drives the bloc's agenda.
Positioning BRICS as centrist rather than explicitly anti-West reflects India's strategic need to protect its Western partnerships while leading a Global South platform.
The discussion of complications from Pakistan's possible inclusion and the weight Malaysia could add shows expansion is now a political question, not a procedural one.
With the next summit in China, the real test is how much of India's reform roadmap agenda survives the handover of the presidency.

What to watch — Watch whether cross-border payment mechanisms, a strengthened New Development Bank and the reform roadmap move from paper to implementation, and how India's priorities fare under China's chairmanship.

This is expert opinion voiced at a think-tank roundtable; the story does not establish the exact text of the Delhi Declaration, official member-state reactions, or any timeline for implementation.

Deep dive

Research brief · 8 facts · 4 dates · exam-ready

The brief

Context

India chaired the 18th BRICS Summit in New Delhi, which adopted the Delhi Declaration despite low expectations about India's convening power in a difficult geopolitical and geoeconomic environment. Three days after the summit, on 16 September 2026, the Chintan Research Foundation (CRF) held a roundtable in New Delhi titled "Post BRICS Summit 2026: Presidency and Lessons for India", bringing together diplomats, academics, think tanks and the strategic community. Participants reviewed the summit's outcomes, areas of convergence and divergence among members, and the implications of BRICS expansion to an 11-member bloc with outreach to regional groupings of the Global South.

Key facts

The 18th BRICS Summit was held in New Delhi under India's chairmanship and adopted the Delhi Declaration by consensus.
A significant outcome for India was consensus on the 2025 Pahalgam attack, with a call for zero tolerance for terrorism and disruption of terror financing.
The summit deliberated on de-dollarisation, the absence of a common BRICS currency, cross-border payment mechanisms and strengthening the New Development Bank (NDB).
China proposed a BRICS open-source artificial intelligence community, but members expressed scepticism over the proposal.
The African Union, ASEAN, CELAC, GCC and BIMSTEC were present, widening representation of developing countries.
Prime Minister Narendra Modi challenged the 11-member bloc to collaborate on 10 global governance reform proposals to form a unified BRICS Reform Roadmap ahead of the next summit in China.
Heads of National Standardization Bodies (NSBs) met at the summit to discuss harmonising standards and reducing trade barriers.
The CRF roundtable was held in New Delhi on 16 September 2026, three days after the summit, titled "Post BRICS Summit 2026: Presidency and Lessons for India".

Timeline

2025The Pahalgam attack, on which the 18th BRICS Summit secured consensus.
Around 13 September 2026 (three days before the roundtable)The 18th BRICS Summit is held in New Delhi under India's chairmanship; the Delhi Declaration is adopted.
16 September 2026Chintan Research Foundation convenes the roundtable "Post BRICS Summit 2026: Presidency and Lessons for India" in New Delhi.
Upcoming months / next summitMembers to work on 10 global governance reform proposals for a unified BRICS Reform Roadmap ahead of the summit in China.

Who has a stake

India (as BRICS chair) — Credibility as a consensus-builder and Global South convenor; delivering the Delhi Declaration despite low expectations.
Ministry of External Affairs — Shambhu L. Hakki, Joint Secretary (Multilateral) and BRICS Sous Sherpa, delivered the keynote explaining the presidency's success.
BRICS members including China, Russia, Iran — Presence of their presidents; China proposed an open-source AI community and hosts the next summit.
New Development Bank — Roundtable recommended further strengthening of the NDB as a practical deliverable.
Aspirant and partner countries (Pakistan, Malaysia, Cuba, Bolivia) — Pakistan's possible inclusion seen as complicating; Malaysia as adding weight; sustained economic engagement urged with Cuba and Bolivia.
Regional groupings (African Union, ASEAN, CELAC, GCC, BIMSTEC) — Wider representation of developing countries and broader cooperation through summit participation.
G7 — Under France's presidency it showed interest in collaborating with BRICS, recognising action on connectivity, supply chains and finance lies in the Global South.

Why it matters

India used its chairmanship to steer an expanded and diverse BRICS away from an explicitly anti-West orientation towards a centrist, practical-cooperation agenda, while securing language on terrorism that matters directly to Indian security interests. The summit's outcomes span trade resilience, institutional reform, payments, food, energy, climate and technology, positioning BRICS as a comprehensive Global South platform rather than a narrow geopolitical bloc. But as participants cautioned, multilateral outcomes are long-term and the test now is implementation rather than paper consensus.

UPSC angle

Prelims pointers

18th BRICS Summit: held in New Delhi under India's chairmanship; adopted the Delhi Declaration.
BRICS is now an 11-member bloc; the next summit is to be hosted by China.
New Development Bank (NDB) is the BRICS development bank; strengthening it was a key summit theme.
Troika Agreement: mechanism to ensure institutional continuity across annual BRICS presidency rotations.
Outreach groupings present at the summit: African Union, ASEAN, CELAC, GCC and BIMSTEC.
Roundtable recommendations: cross-border payment mechanisms, BRICS grain exchange, remote-sensing satellite constellations, wealth creation from waste.

Mains framing

India's 18th BRICS Summit presidency is best assessed as an exercise in consensus-building within an increasingly heterogeneous grouping. The causes of scepticism were structural: an expanded 11-member bloc, a challenging geopolitical and geoeconomic environment, divergence over de-dollarisation and the absence of a common currency, and the risk of BRICS being read as an anti-West platform. India's response was to broaden the agenda beyond geopolitics and de-dollarisation to trade resilience, institutional reform, security, health, food and energy security, climate, technology, critical minerals, AI, education, women's empowerment and people-to-people links, framed by a "humanity-first" approach. Concrete gains included consensus on the 2025 Pahalgam attack with zero tolerance for terrorism and disruption of terror financing, harmonisation talks among National Standardization Bodies to cut trade barriers, and Prime Minister Modi's call for 10 global governance reform proposals to form a BRICS Reform Roadmap. Divergence remained visible: members were sceptical of China's proposed open-source AI community, and expansion questions such as Pakistan's possible inclusion were seen as complicating. The way forward, as the roundtable urged, lies in implementation rather than declarations: early operationalisation of cross-border payment mechanisms, the BRICS grain exchange and remote-sensing satellite constellations, a stronger NDB, continuity through the Troika Agreement, and engagement with South Asian and partner countries.

Key terms

Delhi Declaration: The consensus outcome document adopted at the 18th BRICS Summit, signalling practical cooperation among developing countries.
New Development Bank (NDB): BRICS-established development bank; the summit and roundtable stressed strengthening it.
De-dollarisation: Reducing reliance on the US dollar in trade and finance; discussed alongside the absence of a common BRICS currency.
Troika Agreement: BRICS arrangement to maintain institutional continuity across annual rotating presidencies.
BRICS Sous Sherpa: Official coordinating BRICS negotiations for a country; India's is Shambhu L. Hakki, Joint Secretary (Multilateral), MEA.
Chintan Research Foundation (CRF): Think tank that convened the New Delhi roundtable on 16 September 2026 reviewing India's BRICS presidency.

Practice questions

Evaluate India's chairmanship of the 18th BRICS Summit. To what extent did the Delhi Declaration move BRICS from a geopolitical bloc towards a platform for practical Global South cooperation?
Discuss the challenges of de-dollarisation and cross-border payment mechanisms within an expanded BRICS. What role can the New Development Bank play?
BRICS expansion brings both weight and friction. Critically examine the implications of admitting new South Asian and Southeast Asian members for India's interests.

Grounded only in the source report — figures and dates are the source's, not inferred.

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