BRICS is evolving with new members; differences will take time to resolve: Brazil FM Mauro Vieira

Brazil's Foreign Minister Mauro Vieira, attending the BRICS foreign ministers' meeting in New Delhi, acknowledged that BRICS is evolving with its new and par...

What Happened

Brazil's Foreign Minister Mauro Vieira, attending the BRICS foreign ministers' meeting in New Delhi, acknowledged that BRICS is evolving with its new and partner members but cautioned that geopolitical differences within the bloc will take time to resolve.
The statement came in the context of the bloc's failure to issue a joint statement on the West Asia conflict — a consequence of the divergent positions held by BRICS members Iran and UAE.
Vieira indicated that the leading BRICS countries had reached a consensus on the "criteria and principles" that will guide further expansion of the grouping.
Brazil has historically played a moderating role within BRICS, blocking applications by Nicaragua and Venezuela for partner status in 2024 due to concerns about democratic governance.
The remarks underscore the tension between BRICS's ambitions as a platform for the Global South and the practical difficulty of achieving consensus among a diverse and rapidly expanding membership with conflicting geopolitical interests.

Static Topic Bridges

BRICS Expansion: From Five to Twenty-Plus (2024–2025)

BRICS has undergone its most significant structural transformation since South Africa joined in 2010. The 2024 expansion added four new full members, and 2025 saw the formalisation of a "partner country" category.

Original BRIC (2009): Brazil, Russia, India, China.
South Africa joined: 2010 (attended as full member from 2011 summit).
2024 expansion (new full members): Egypt, Ethiopia, Iran, UAE.
Indonesia joined as full member: January 2025.
Ten BRICS partner countries admitted in 2025: Belarus, Bolivia, Cuba, Kazakhstan, Malaysia, Nigeria, Thailand, Uganda, Uzbekistan, Vietnam.
Brazil vetoed partner status for Nicaragua (due to severed diplomatic ties) and Venezuela (due to disputed 2024 elections and ongoing crisis).
India assumed the BRICS chairmanship in December 2025.

Connection to this news: Brazil's acknowledgement that differences "will take time to resolve" is a candid recognition that the rapid expansion — particularly the admission of Iran and UAE, who are in conflict — has made consensus far harder to achieve.

BRICS Governance: Chairmanship, Summits, and Decision Making

BRICS rotates its chairmanship annually among members, following alphabetical order. The chair hosts the annual summit and the ministerial meetings, sets the agenda, and presides over working groups.

Chairmanship sequence: Brazil (2025), India (2026), Russia (expected).
The annual summit is the highest decision-making forum; it issues a joint Leaders' Declaration.
Ministerial meetings (foreign ministers, finance ministers, etc.) prepare the ground for the summit.
All decisions require consensus — there is no weighted voting or binding charter.
BRICS has no permanent secretariat, though the New Development Bank (NDB), headquartered in Shanghai, serves as a financial arm. NDB was established by the Fortaleza Agreement, 2014.
The BRICS Contingent Reserve Arrangement (CRA) — a $100 billion currency swap mechanism — was also established in 2014.

Connection to this news: The consensus requirement means that a bloc encompassing Iran, UAE, Russia, China, India, and Brazil — with radically different positions on the West Asia war — structurally cannot issue a joint statement without any member withholding agreement.

Multipolarism and the Global South Narrative

BRICS was conceived as a vehicle for multipolar global governance — redistributing influence away from the post-WWII Western-dominated order (UN Security Council P5, IMF, World Bank, G7) toward large emerging economies. The "Global South" framing posits shared development interests among non-Western nations.

The term "Global South" broadly refers to developing and lower-middle-income countries in Asia, Africa, and Latin America.
BRICS members collectively account for approximately 40% of the world's population and roughly 35–40% of global GDP (in PPP terms) as of 2025.
India's position within BRICS is nuanced: India views BRICS as a platform for reform of multilateral institutions (IMF quota reform, UNSC reform), not as an anti-Western bloc.
India, Brazil, and South Africa are significantly closer to the US than Russia and China, creating a de facto moderate bloc within BRICS.
Russia and China seek to use BRICS as an alternative to Western-led institutions; India and Brazil prefer multi-alignment.

Connection to this news: Brazil's FM's statements reflect the moderate camp's view — BRICS should evolve carefully, with expansion governed by clear criteria, rather than becoming a vehicle for anti-Western geopolitics or admitting members whose inclusion undermines bloc cohesion.

India as BRICS Chair: Interests and Constraints

India's BRICS chairmanship (2026) is the first since the bloc's dramatic expansion. India's interests as chair include advancing the September 2026 New Delhi summit agenda, reforming multilateral institutions (UNSC, IMF), promoting trade settlement in local currencies, and demonstrating its capacity as a responsible leader of the Global South.

India's BRICS priorities for 2026 include cooperation on healthcare, digital infrastructure, and climate finance — under the theme "Building for Resilience, Innovation, Cooperation and Sustainability."
India must balance its BRICS chairmanship with its strategic partnerships: the US, the Quad (US, India, Japan, Australia), the UAE (Abraham Accords-adjacent), Iran (Chabahar Port), and Israel.
India has historically advocated UNSC reform — seeking a permanent seat with veto power — and uses multilateral forums including BRICS to build support.
The NDB, of which India is a founding member, has expanded to include Bangladesh, Egypt, UAE, and Uruguay as shareholders.

Connection to this news: India's hosting of the BRICS foreign ministers' meeting in May 2026, and its failure to broker a joint statement on West Asia, illustrates both the opportunity and the limits of India's diplomatic role as BRICS chair amid a deeply divided expanded membership.

Key Facts & Data

First BRIC summit: 2009, Yekaterinburg, Russia
South Africa joins (BRICS formed): 2010/2011
2024 new full members: Egypt, Ethiopia, Iran, UAE (joined at 16th BRICS summit)
Indonesia joins: January 2025
2025 BRICS partner countries: 10 (Belarus, Bolivia, Cuba, Kazakhstan, Malaysia, Nigeria, Thailand, Uganda, Uzbekistan, Vietnam)
India BRICS chairmanship: 2026 (assumed December 2025)
BRICS 2026 annual summit: New Delhi, September 2026
New Development Bank (NDB): established by Fortaleza Agreement, 2014; HQ Shanghai
BRICS Contingent Reserve Arrangement (CRA): $100 billion pool, established 2014
BRICS members as share of world population: ~40%
BRICS share of global GDP (PPP): ~35–40% (2025 estimate)
Brazil's BRICS chairmanship: 2025 (preceding India)
Countries blocked from partner status by Brazil (2024): Nicaragua, Venezuela