Journalism of Courage
What BRICS Declaration in Delhi says on wars and tariffs
The phrasing of the war in West Asia divided Iran and the UAE, members of the BRICS since 2024, in the last six months.
Prime Minister Narendra Modi with Russian President Vladimir Putin, Iranian President Masoud Pezeshkian, and Chinese President Xi Jinping during the 18th BRICS Summit, at the Bharat Mandapam, in New Delhi. (@narendramodi/IG via PTI Photo)
The BRICS nations on Saturday issued a joint declaration at the summit held in New Delhi’s Bharat Mandapam, expressing concern over the tensions persisting due to the West Asia war, and sought “maximum restraint, as well as avoiding actions that could further aggravate the situation.”
As part of New Delhi Declaration, the grouping sought, “to ensure the protection of civilians and civilian infrastructure in accordance with the purposes and principles of the Charter of the United Nations in their entirety and interconnectedness, including respect for the sovereignty and territorial integrity of the States.”
What does the BRICS Declaration say?
While calling for restraint and de-escalation of the ongoing Middle East conflict, BRICS nations pushed for dialogue and diplomacy “towards a longterm understanding that will contribute to lasting peace, security and stability in the region.”
“We stress the need to work together to maintain smooth flow of global trade, supply chains and energy, in accordance with applicable international law,” the statement said.
BRICS on trade wars
In their declaration, BRICS nations called for for the immediate restoration of an effective and fully functioning two-tier, binding WTO (World Trade Organisation) dispute settlement mechanism.
“We strongly advocate for the immediate restoration of an accessible, effective, fully functioning, two-tier binding WTO dispute settlement mechanism as a foundation for trust and predictability for all WTO members, and the appointment of new Appellate Body members without further delay,” the statement said.
Supporting reform of the 166-member WTO and strengthening a non-discriminatory, open, equitable, transparent, fair, inclusive, predictable and rules-based multilateral trading system, the members expressed commitment to remain engaged in the multilateral negotiations in Geneva, especially in the debates regarding the reform of the WTO.
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India achieved the much-anticipated consensus on a joint declaration at the BRICS Summit after days of hectic negotiations, sources confirmed to The Indian Express on Saturday.
The phrasing of the war in West Asia had divided Iran and UAE in the last six months. In May this year, there was no consensus on the paragraph at the BRICS foreign ministers’ meeting.
With the war in West Asia flaring up following the exchange of strikes between the US and Iran, the BRICS Sherpas, the most senior negotiators from the 11 member countries of the grouping, had been burning the midnight oil to try and hammer out the joint declaration for the New Delhi summit.
With the UAE and Iran, new members of the BRICS since 2024, part of the negotiations, Indian officials had been working to bridge the gap between the warring parties.
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Ever since the start of the war on February 28, when the US and Israel attacked Iran, Tehran has targeted US bases in the Gulf region, including the UAE. This has had the Emiratis and the Iranians at loggerheads over the last six months.
© The Indian Express Pvt Ltd
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