BRICS negotiators reached a joint declaration hours before the bloc's leaders opened a summit in New Delhi on Saturday. The text is expected to avoid naming any single country while condemning unilateral war, bridging a rift between members Iran and the United Arab Emirates over the Gulf conflict.
BRICS negotiators agreed on a joint declaration hours before the bloc's leaders opened a summit in New Delhi on Saturday, four sources told Reuters. The text is unlikely to name any country but will condemn unilateral war by any country, the sources said, and leaders were expected to approve it later in the day.
Declaration bridges the Iran-UAE rift
The summit aims to narrow divisions between members Iran and the United Arab Emirates over the Gulf conflict. Foreign policy experts had said the bloc's key test was finding language on the Middle East crisis that both Abu Dhabi and Tehran could accept, clearing the way for a joint text. Such a statement was unlikely to shift the current geopolitical landscape, though it would demonstrate unity among emerging economies against measures such as Western sanctions, the experts said. BRICS foreign ministers meeting in New Delhi in May could not issue a joint statement, stymied by the same Iran-UAE differences.
Conflict simmers in the background
Leaders are meeting as the United States and Iran resume tit-for-tat strikes in a war now six months old, following a pause in fighting for much of August. Meanwhile, Iran-aligned Houthi rebels in Yemen have tightened their grip on the Red Sea region. The UAE, hit by Iranian missiles since the war began, suspended all trade and financial transactions with Iran in August.
A bloc seeking more global weight
BRICS is seeking to raise its international profile, demanding reform of institutions such as the World Bank, IMF and WTO, which some members view as dominated by Western powers. Leaders attending the summit include Russia's Vladimir Putin, China's Xi Jinping, Iran's Masoud Pezeshkian, South Africa's Cyril Ramaphosa and Abu Dhabi Crown Prince Sheikh Khaled bin Mohamed bin Zayed Al Nahyan. Host India, which maintains strong ties with the United States, Russia, Israel, Iran and the Gulf Arab states, is engaged in a balancing act, with Prime Minister Narendra Modi pushing BRICS members to boost trade cooperation and reduce barriers.
The group now spans Brazil, Russia, India, China, South Africa, Egypt, Ethiopia, Indonesia, Iran and the UAE. Set up in 2009 to challenge a world order dominated by the United States and its Western allies, BRICS members together account for more than 40% of the world's population and almost a quarter of the global economy.
Source: Commodities & Futures News
Trading involves risk.
Risk Disclaimer
