Editorial: Making the best of BRICS Summit
The Prime Minister had utilised the platform to make a persuasive plea against terrorism and the need to impose sanctions on their sponsors.
There is something to write home about in Prime Minister Narendra Modi’s participation in the BRICS Summit in Brazil. The Prime Minister had utilised the platform to make a persuasive plea against terrorism and the need to impose sanctions on their sponsors. He also reiterated the need for reforming global and multilateral institutions like the UN Security Council, the WTO, and multilateral development banks.
These ideas seemed to have found resonance among like-minded countries belonging to the Global South which are emerging as powers to reckon with but have not yet received their due place in the larger scheme of things. The Rio de Janerio Declaration was a victory of sorts for India, as it condemned “in the strongest terms the terrorist attack in Jammu and Kashmir on April 22” and reaffirmed its commitment to combating terrorism in all its forms and manifestations, including the cross-border movement of terrorists, terrorism financing and safe havens – an oblique reference to Pakistan.
Criticism was mounting against the effectiveness of India’s foreign policy in the wake of the Pahalgam terrorist attack, as it was widely felt that not many major countries lent unequivocal support to India beyond routine condemnations and condolences. At one point, it seemed Pakistan’s narrative was getting a better play and was able to sway global opinion in its favour. India had to reject a statement released by the Organisation of Islamic Cooperation, which was skewed in favour of Pakistan. At the recent Shanghai Cooperation Organisation’s summit in China, India’s position did not find the expected or required traction.
As a damage control measure, both abroad and within the country, the Indian government had to send multiple bipartisan delegations to counter Pakistan’s campaign and present India’s point of view. In such a background, the outcome of the BRICS summit can be considered a victory.
India has been doing a tightrope walk when it comes to Israel-Palestine conflict. At the BRICS summit, Prime Minister Modi made a pointed reference to the “humanitarian situation in Gaza” and how it is a “cause of grave concern”, but was careful to avoid bringing up references to Israel and Iran.
Given the Global South rhetoric of BRICS, the declaration had to go the whole hog on Israel-Palestine and Israel-Iran conflicts. The declaration talks about the resumption of continuous Israeli attacks against Gaza, and condemns the obstruction of the entry of humanitarian aid into the territory, the use of starvation as a method of warfare, the attempts to politicise or militarise humanitarian assistance. It further reaffirmed “the right of the Palestinian people to self-determination, including the right to their independent State of Palestine.”
Similarly, the BRICS declaration was quite forthright in condemning “the military strikes against the Islamic Republic of Iran since June 13”, describing it as constituting a violation of international law and the UN Charter. Moreover, it expressed serious concern over deliberate attacks on civilian infrastructure and peaceful nuclear facilities under full safeguards of the International Atomic Energy Agency (IAEA), in violation of international law and relevant resolutions of the IAEA.
For every diplomatic victory, minor or major, India will increasingly find itself on the horns of dilemma, as it will have to deftly manage serious contradictions vis-à-vis the US, Russia, and China, which are at loggerheads with each other, and, of course, the NDA government’s pivot towards Israel.
