In New Delhi Declaration, BRICS Leaders Demand Reforms In UN

Leaders of BRICS have unveiled the New Delhi Declaration in which they demanded reforms in the United Nations Governing Institutions, especially the United Nations Security Council (UNSC)  to reflect a more democratic  and stronger representation for developing countries.

The Declaration was made at the ongoing 18th BRICS Leaders’ Summit in New Delhi, India, which commenced on Saturday with the theme “Building for Resilience, Innovation, Cooperation and Sustainability.”

Prime Minister of India Nerandra Modi during his remarks at the opening of the two-day Summit said that the 2026 BRICS Leaders Summit with India as the chair is focused on practical, forward-looking and people-centric cooperation that will enhance the Global South.

The meeting is being attended by Chinese President Xi Jinping; Russian President, Vladimir Putin; President of Indonesia, Prabowo Subianto;  Iran’s President Masoud Pezeshkian; President of Egypt, Abdel Fatah el-Sisi; Prime Minister of Ethiopia, Abiy Ahmed and  South Africa’s Cyril Ramaphosa.

The Nigerian Government sent a strong delegation led by Vice President Kashim Shettima; Foreign Minister, Bianca Odumegwu Ojukwu; Minister of Industry, Trade and Investment, Dr Jumoke Oduwole; Minister of Communications, Innovation and Digital Economy, Dr Bosun Tijani; and Minister of Environment, Balarabe Abbas Lawal, among other senior officials.

The United Arab Emirates sent the Crown Prince of Abu Dhabi, Sheikh Khaled bin Mohamed bin Zayed Al Nahyan, as its representative and founding member Brazil sent Foreign Minister Mauro Vieira to stand in for President Luiz Inacio Lula da Silva.

Briefing the media after the session, Secretary (Economic Relations) in the Ministry of External Affairs of India Shri Sudhakar Dalela, said the summit marked a significant milestone as India since assumed the BRICS’s chair in January for the fourth time as the grouping celebrates 20 years of institutionalised cooperation.

Dalela noted that the strong participation of member countries, Partner countries and international institutions reflected the growing importance of BRICS and confidence in India’s leadership, adding that the leaders also backed reforms in the international financial architecture to provide the Global South with a stronger voice.

“The discussions reaffirmed BRICS principles of mutual respect, equality, solidarity, openness, inclusiveness and consensus, with differences addressed through dialogue and consultation,” the Delhi Declaration said.

The leaders also urged for dialogue and diplomacy as the instruments to resolve ongoing geopolitical conflicts and economic uncertainties.

Prime Minister Modi also proposed four initiatives for BRICS cooperation, which include the creation of a BRICS Troika mechanism, the development of a BRICS roadmap on global governance reform, the establishment of a Seafarer Emergency Support Initiative Network to assist seafarers in distress worldwide, and a Global South Negotiation Support Initiative aimed at building capacity among officials and young professionals in emerging areas such as technology and global rule-making.

A fact sheet released alongside the declaration outlines more than 50 practical outcomes across the four pillars of India’s leadership which were resilience, innovation, cooperation and sustainability.

As part of the summit’s sustainability agenda, BRICS leaders participated in a joint tree-plantation initiative aligned with India’s call for environmental stewardship and climate action. A commemorative postal stamp marking two decades of the BRICS journey was also released during the summit.