BRICS has become too large to dismiss and too internally divided to treat as a unified alliance. Leaders from the 11-member group are meeting in New Delhi with trade, investment, energy and global conflicts on the agenda.
India is framing the organization as a platform for emerging economies rather than an anti-Western bloc. China, Russia and Iran have been more explicit about reducing Western dominance in finance and politics.
One recurring goal is greater use of national currencies in trade instead of routing so much commerce through the U.S. dollar. That does not mean the dollar is about to be replaced, but it can slowly reduce dependence at the margins.
The test is whether the summit produces mechanisms rather than slogans. The bloc’s economic weight is real; its ability to coordinate policy remains the open question.
BRICS leaders are meeting as wars and U.S.-China tensions expose internal differences. India is emphasizing trade and development cooperation while China, Russia and Iran push a stronger challenge to Western-led institutions.