Iran war: Why the BRICS foreign ministers meeting in India matters

India is hosting a gathering of overseas ministers from BRICS nations connected May 14-15 successful a precursor to the 18th BRICS summit, which New Delhi volition big successful September. The meeting, which starts connected Thursday morning, coincides with United States President Donald Trump’s three-day sojourn to Beijing for a state visit with Chinese person Xi Jinping.

Here is much astir the overseas ministers’ meeting, who is attending and wherefore it matters.

What is BRICS?

BRICS is simply a grouping of large emerging economies seeking to coordinate information and economical argumentation successful bid to amplify the demands of the Global South astatine planetary organisations and connected issues wherever the West has traditionally dominated economically and politically.

The acronym stands for Brazil, Russia, India, China and South Africa. The organisation was called BRIC successful its archetypal signifier – Brazil, Russia, India and China – erstwhile its overseas ministers began gathering successful 2006, and erstwhile it held its archetypal acme successful 2009. It became BRICS erstwhile South Africa joined successful 2010.

In 2023, BRICS extended invitations to Egypt, Ethiopia, Iran, Saudi Arabia and the United Arab Emirates aft these countries applied for membership. Saudi Arabia has yet to formally join, but the others have. An invitation was besides extended to Argentina, but was turned down arsenic President Javier Milei, elected successful December 2023, had campaigned connected the committedness of bolstering ties with the West.

Indonesia joined the group successful January 2025, aft its rank was approved during the acme successful 2023 successful Johannesburg.

The radical sets priorities and holds discussions astatine an yearly summit, which members instrumentality turns hosting. Last year, Brazil hosted the BRICS gathering and, successful 2024, Russia hosted the yearly meeting. This year, it is India’s crook to host.

This week’s gathering successful New Delhi volition bring unneurotic the overseas ministers of BRICS countries, who are expected to sermon economical practice and coordinate their positions connected cardinal planetary issues.

When and wherever is the BRICS overseas ministers’ meeting?

The BRICS overseas ministers’ meeting, held to hole for the 18th BRICS acme successful September, volition instrumentality spot connected Thursday, May 14, and Friday, May 15, successful New Delhi, India’s Ministry of External Affairs said connected Tuesday.

On Thursday, overseas ministers are expected to get astatine 10:00am (04:30 GMT), and sessions are expected to instrumentality spot passim the day, concluding with a meal astatine 7pm (01:30 GMT).

On Friday, 1 league is expected to instrumentality place, starting astatine 10:00am (04:30 GMT).

All of the meetings but 1 volition instrumentality spot successful Bharat Mandapam, an accumulation hallway and normal centre located adjacent to the Supreme Court of India.

On Thursday astatine 1pm (07:30 GMT), Indian Prime Minister Narendra Modi volition articulation a associated league telephone with the visiting leaders from Seva Teerth, a caller administrative analyzable that serves arsenic the authoritative office of the premier minister’s office.

Who is attending the meeting?

Foreign ministers from wrong and extracurricular the BRICS radical are expected to be the meeting.

The Russian Foreign Ministry has said that Foreign Minister Sergey Lavrov volition be the meeting. South Africa’s Ronald Lamola and Brazil’s Mauro Vieira are besides some attending.

Chinese Foreign Minister Wang Yi volition not be owed to Trump’s sojourn to Beijing. Instead, China volition beryllium represented by China’s Ambassador to India Xu Feihong, Indian media has reported.

Iranian Foreign Minister Abbas Araghchi has landed successful New Delhi to participate. Indonesia’s Foreign Minister Sugiono besides arrived successful New Delhi connected Wednesday.

It is not wide who volition beryllium representing the UAE astatine the BRICS meeting, adjacent arsenic the US-Israel warfare connected Iran exacerbates tensions betwixt the UAE and Iran.

Russia’s President Vladimir Putin attends an online gathering with South Africa’s President Cyril Ramaphosa and different leaders of BRICS nations, successful Sochi, Russia, connected September 8, 2025 [File: Sputnik/Vyacheslav Prokofyev/Pool via Reuters]

What’s connected the agenda?

The taxable of this gathering is “Building for Resilience, Innovation, Cooperation and Sustainability”, according to India’s Foreign Ministry. This volition absorption connected “people-centric and holistic healthcare, with an accent connected collaboration connected pressing wellness challenges, including communicable and non-communicable diseases”, it added.

However, the ongoing warfare connected Iran is apt to dominate, and discussions volition acceptable the docket for the yearly BRICS acme successful September, observers say.

“The Iran warfare is apt to formed a shadiness implicit some the BRICS acme and the Trump-Xi meeting,” Rafael Loss, a argumentation chap for defence, information and exertion astatine the European Council connected Foreign Relations (ECFR), told Al Jazeera.

The warfare connected Iran entered its 76th time connected Thursday, with diplomatic efforts to extremity the struggle hanging successful the balance.

Iran’s Tasnim quality bureau reported that, arsenic good arsenic taking portion successful the main BRICS sessions, Araghchi volition clasp abstracted meetings with Indian Foreign Minister Subrahmanyam Jaishankar and different officials attending the meeting.

In April this year, India hosted a BRICS Deputy Foreign Ministers and Special Envoys for the Middle East and North Africa gathering successful New Delhi. That gathering ended without a associated connection aft Iran and the UAE clashed implicit however to code the US-Israeli warfare connected Iran, with the UAE besides seeing itself arsenic a unfortunate of Iranian aggression.

Since then, tensions betwixt Iran and the UAE person lone risen, with Tehran’s warfare messaging increasingly targeting the UAE.

Israel’s genocidal warfare connected Gaza is besides different constituent of accent wrong the bloc. At the April meeting, India – precocious an Israeli state – attempted to soften disapproval of Israel’s actions successful Gaza, starring to a nonaccomplishment wrong the bloc to get astatine a statement connected the subject.

“The gathering successful India occurs astatine a hard clip successful which the cohesion of the BRICS confronts challenges owed to the person relations of India with the US and Israel, and the struggle successful West Asia betwixt Iran and the UAE,” Michael Dunford, emeritus prof astatine the School of Global Studies astatine the University of Sussex, UK, told Al Jazeera.

What astir Trump’s gathering with Xi astatine the aforesaid time?

Trump landed successful China connected Wednesday evening and, aft a ceremonial welcome, headed consecutive to his hotel. On Thursday, helium volition clasp bilateral talks with the Chinese president, and volition besides articulation President Xi for a moving luncheon connected Friday, earlier flying backmost to the US.

“A effect of the coincidence of Trump’s sojourn to China with the BRICS overseas ministers’ acme successful India is that Wang Yi volition not attend, with China represented by its Indian ambassador Xu Feihong,” Dunford said.

ECFR’s Rafael Loss predicted that Trump is apt to effort to person Xi to enactment unit connected Iran to accommodate US demands to extremity the naval standoff successful the Gulf and unfastened the Strait of Hormuz.

In the past, helium said, China avoided getting progressive successful protracted planetary struggle absorption efforts and alternatively attempted to “swoop in” to seal deals during the last stages, specified arsenic successful the Iran-Saudi Arabia normalisation statement of 2023, which has since collapsed.

“But if the terms is right, and with Trump’s short-termism and disregard of accepted US allies, Xi could beryllium persuaded to instrumentality a much vocal enactment vis-a-vis Iran,” Loss said. “Taiwan mightiness extremity up bearing the brunt.”

How important is this meeting?

This gathering of overseas ministers besides comes amid an vigor situation triggered by the closure of the Strait of Hormuz during the US-Israel warfare connected Iran.

Since aboriginal March, Iran has restricted shipping done the strait, a constrictive waterway linking Gulf lipid producers to the unfastened water and done which 20 percent of the world’s lipid and liquefied earthy state (LNG) supplies were shipped earlier the war. Iran has allowed transition by vessels from prime countries, but they are required to negociate transit with the Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps (IRGC).

Iranian attacks connected US assets and lipid and state facilities successful the Gulf successful the aboriginal weeks of the warfare person besides affected vigor supplies.

In April, the US announced a naval blockade on ships entering oregon leaving Iranian ports, further adding to the disruption of planetary lipid and state supplies.

This has had a nonstop interaction connected respective BRICS members. Both India and China trust heavy connected Gulf lipid shipped done the strait. Saudi Arabia and the UAE some vessel lipid done the strait. While Brazil, Egypt and South Africa are not arsenic straight reliant connected the lipid that moves done the strait, they are impacted by rapidly rising substance prices.

“It is improbable that the BRICS acme volition nutrient a statement connection that goes beyond condemning attacks connected nations’ sovereignty successful wide presumption arsenic BRICS has opted to bash successful the past, including connected Russia’s warfare against Ukraine,” ECFR’s Loss said.