NEW DELHI | Chinese President Xi Jinping called for deeper economic and technological cooperation among the expanded BRICS grouping on Sunday as Indian Prime Minister Narendra Modi warned that geopolitical tensions, disrupted supply chains and other global crises are threatening stability and development.
Speaking at the closing session of the two-day BRICS summit in New Delhi, Xi proposed new initiatives covering artificial intelligence, trade and investment, including a BRICS AI Open Source Zone, a special economic zone partnership and a forum on services trade that China will host next year. He also urged members to strengthen industrial and supply chains and develop a more integrated market.
Xi’s proposals are part of what China and Russia have called a “Greater BRICS” approach, reflecting the group’s expansion beyond its original five members. The bloc now includes Brazil, Russia, India, China, South Africa, Egypt, Ethiopia, Iran, the United Arab Emirates and Indonesia, with Saudi Arabia also listed as a member by some BRICS sources despite continuing questions over its formal participation. Reuters reported that the group also has 10 partner countries across Asia, Africa, Latin America and the Middle East.
Modi, who hosted the summit as India’s BRICS chair, said the bloc should focus on practical solutions that can benefit countries throughout the Global South. He warned that growing conflicts, supply-chain disruptions and climate-related crises are increasingly affecting ordinary people.
He also cautioned against the “weaponization of technology and critical minerals,” saying such developments could undermine global development and shared prosperity, according to The Associated Press. Modi announced an initiative to establish an early-warning system for infectious diseases and urged BRICS countries to turn their summit commitments into concrete action.
The summit produced a joint declaration expressing concern over escalating tensions in the Middle East and calling for restraint. The declaration also opposed unilateral sanctions and tariff barriers and backed greater use of local currencies and stronger cross-border payment systems. BRICS leaders endorsed cooperation in areas including energy, food security, artificial intelligence and climate action.
The agreement was notable because the expanded group includes countries with competing interests and differing relationships with major powers. Iran, Saudi Arabia and the United Arab Emirates are all part of the enlarged BRICS framework, while China, Russia and India maintain different strategic relationships with the United States and other Western countries.
Russian President Vladimir Putin said BRICS could serve as a driving force for a more multipolar world and urged members to combine the strengths of their individual economies. Modi, however, stressed that BRICS should not be viewed as an organization opposed to other countries, emphasizing cooperation and solutions applicable across the Global South.
The summit also came as India and China sought to improve relations. Modi and Xi held talks on the sidelines of the meeting, marking another step toward stabilizing ties strained by a deadly 2020 border clash. Both sides have since worked to restore diplomatic and economic exchanges while continuing to manage unresolved border disputes.
BRICS began as BRIC, a grouping of Brazil, Russia, India and China that held its first leaders’ summit in Yekaterinburg, Russia, in 2009. South Africa joined in 2011, turning BRIC into BRICS. Egypt, Ethiopia, Iran and the UAE joined in 2024, while Indonesia became a full member in 2025, giving the bloc a significantly broader geographic and economic reach.
The group was originally established partly to give emerging economies a stronger voice in global institutions dominated by the United States and other developed economies. In 2014, BRICS established the New Development Bank, providing financing for infrastructure and sustainable development projects in member and other developing countries.
Two decades after the BRIC concept was first coined, the enlarged bloc now represents nearly half of the world’s population and a substantial share of global economic activity. Its growing size gives it greater potential influence, but the wide differences among its members remain a challenge to building a unified political and economic agenda.
As China prepares to take over the BRICS chairmanship from India, Xi’s proposals signal an effort to move the group beyond declarations and toward more concrete cooperation in trade, technology, finance and industrial development, while Modi’s message underscores India’s effort to position BRICS as a platform for the wider Global South rather than an anti-Western alliance.
Si Venus L Peñaflor ay naging editor-in-chief ng Newsworld, isang lokal na pahayagan ng Laguna. Publisher din siya ng Daystar Gazette at Tutubi News Magazine. Siya ay isa ring pintor at doll face designer ng Ninay Dolls, ang unang Manikang Pilipino. Kasali siya sa DesignCrowd sa rank na #305 sa 640,000 graphic designers sa buong daigdig. Kasama din siya sa unang Local TV Broadcast sa Laguna na Beyond Manila. Aktibong kasapi siya ng San Pablo Jaycees Senate bilang isang JCI Senator.
- Venus L Peñaflor
- Venus L Peñaflor
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- Venus L Peñaflor
