This weekend, some of the most powerful leaders on the planet sat around the same massive table in Delhi.
Indian Prime Minister Narendra Modi told the leaders gathered beside him that BRICS countries should increasingly become “rule-shapers” rather than simply “rule-takers.”
And the people sitting around that table made the moment especially significant: Chinese President Xi Jinping, Russian President Vladimir Putin, Iranian President Masoud Pezeshkian, Abu Dhabi Crown Prince Sheikh Khaled bin Mohamed bin Zayed Al Nahyan, South African President Cyril Ramaphosa and other BRICS leaders.
But these countries are far from natural friends.
India and China fought a deadly border clash in 2020. Iran and the UAE have also found themselves on opposite sides of the wider Middle East conflict, with Tehran launching missiles and drones at the UAE as the war rattled economies around the world.
So simply getting all of these leaders into the same room was already a diplomatic achievement for India.
The summit also gave countries a rare opportunity to reconsider their relationships as the war in the Middle East continues to reshape the region.
But agreeing on what the world should look like next is a completely different challenge.
That tension was visible throughout the summit.
### BRICS wants more influence — but not everyone wants the same thing
For countries such as China, Russia and Iran, BRICS has become a way to challenge the dominance of the US and Western Europe.
India, however, has been careful not to turn the group into an openly anti-Western alliance.
Modi stressed that BRICS is “not against anyone.”
That position is important for Delhi because India wants to maintain relationships with countries that don't necessarily get along with each other.
Veteran Indian diplomat Anil Trigunayat argues that some members would like BRICS to become more openly anti-Western, but India has pushed instead for greater “strategic autonomy” and cooperation between its members.
And there is another reason for that cautious approach.
Several BRICS countries have little interest in provoking US President Donald Trump.
### The declaration says a lot — and leaves even more unsaid
Despite the enormous differences between its members, the summit managed to produce a joint declaration.
That was not guaranteed.
Earlier this year, BRICS ministers had already failed twice to agree on a joint statement.
This time, they reached consensus — but largely by avoiding the subjects where the members are most divided.
The New Delhi Declaration called for “maximum restraint” over the Middle East war and condemned attacks on civilian infrastructure and peaceful nuclear facilities.
But it did not assign blame.
It supported a two-state solution for Israel and Palestine and opposed the forced displacement of Palestinians, while carefully framing its language around existing UN resolutions.
Perhaps more surprisingly, the declaration did not mention Russia's war in Ukraine at all — something previous BRICS declarations had done.
The same caution appeared when it came to trade.
The statement criticized rising tariffs and unilateral sanctions without directly naming the United States.
That was probably no accident.
Trump has previously attacked BRICS proposals, including ideas involving cross-border digital currencies, calling them anti-American.
By avoiding direct criticism of Washington, BRICS members managed to express their concerns without turning the declaration into an open confrontation with Trump.
### The real action happened outside the main table
Perhaps the biggest significance of the summit was not what the leaders agreed on publicly, but who was willing to sit down with whom.
Iranian President Masoud Pezeshkian and Abu Dhabi Crown Prince Sheikh Khaled bin Mohamed bin Zayed Al Nahyan held talks on the sidelines of the summit.
It was the highest-level known face-to-face meeting between the two countries since the war began.
For Tehran, the meeting was also a chance to demonstrate that Iran still has diplomatic and economic partners despite pressure from the US and Israel.
Pezeshkian pushed for stronger economic relationships with other BRICS members, including Malaysia, India and Ethiopia, as Iran continues trying to withstand sanctions and economic pressure.
Then there was China.
Xi Jinping's visit to Delhi was his first in seven years, making the meeting with Modi particularly significant.
Relations between India and China have been damaged by years of mistrust, especially after the deadly 2020 border confrontation. India also continues to run a major trade deficit with China.
Still, the mood between the two leaders appeared noticeably warmer this time.
There was a cordial handshake between Xi and Modi — although Modi's famous trademark hug was nowhere to be seen.
Xi stayed for less than 24 hours and skipped the gala dinner hosted by Modi, but the meeting still represented an important step between two countries whose relationship has been extremely difficult.
According to official statements, the two sides agreed to strengthen business ties, improve transport connections and work on removing barriers to trade.
Whether those promises lead to meaningful changes is another question.
Anil Trigunayat believes the relationship has been gradually warming in recent years and that both countries now have reasons to cooperate.
But he remains cautious.
As he puts it: “Trust, but verify first.”
### So, what happens now?
The BRICS summit showed that the group can do something increasingly valuable: bring rivals into the same room and give them space to negotiate outside the traditional Western-led institutions.
But that's also where the difficult part begins.
Most BRICS members seem to agree that the existing global system needs to change.
What they don't agree on is exactly what should replace it — or how they are supposed to build that new system together.
And that may be the biggest challenge facing BRICS.
Getting everyone around the same table is one thing.
Getting them to agree on where the world should go next is another.
