BRICS Summit 2025: Issues & Concerns for World Peace and Security

The growing desire of the Global South to challenge Western supremacy, advance multipolarity, and change international governance was reflected in the 17th BRICS Summit, which took place in Rio de Janeiro, Brazil, on July 6-7, 2025.

- DR SYED MOHAMMAD RAGHIB

The summit brought together leaders from the expanded BRICS grouping, which now consists of 11 countries: Brazil, Russia, India, China, South Africa, Egypt, Ethiopia, Iran, the United Arab Emirates, Saudi Arabia, and Argentina.

The event's overall subject was "Inclusive and Sustainable Global South". The summit, which was hosted by Brazilian President Luiz Inácio Lula da Silva, sought to address important global issues such as trade protectionism, economic inequality, artificial intelligence, climate finance, and institutional reforms.

However, the lack of in-person meetings between Russian President Vladimir Putin and Chinese President Xi Jinping—Putin participated digitally, while Xi was represented by Premier Li Qiang—cast doubt on the bloc's internal cohesion in the face of global disintegration.

Tension between the Global North and South, economic nationalism, and growing global polarization were all factors that influenced the 2025 summit.

The need for reform of global governance institutions, particularly the World Bank, the World Trade Organisation (WTO), the International Monetary Fund (IMF), and the United Nations Security Council (UNSC), was one of the summit's main themes.

Both President Lula and Indian Prime Minister Narendra Modi vehemently argued that the current arrangements do not adequately reflect the geopolitical realities of the twenty-first century and called for more representation of emerging nations in these institutions.

Both leaders emphasized the need to democratize international decision-making while restating the long-standing calls for permanent participation in the UNSC made by nations like South Africa, Brazil, and India.

By advocating for a more inclusive global order that preserves international law, sovereignty, and respect for one another, the BRICS joint declaration reaffirmed this view.