Lula’s Absence and Xi’s Boycott of the Vegetarian Menu: How the BRICS Summit Went

Source: O Estado de S. Paulo, | Original Published At: 2026-09-16 21:00:00 UTC

Key Points

• The 18th BRICS summit was held in India on September 12 and 13, with Brazilian President Luiz Inácio Lula da Silva absent.
• The final declaration criticized economic unilateralism, sanctions, tariffs, and trade barriers, while defending stronger economic multilateralism, without naming the United States.
• The declaration supported wider use of national currencies in intra-BRICS trade to reduce dependence on the dollar, but the bloc has not advanced a common exchange parameter or a so-called BRICS currency.
• On the Middle East, the declaration called for maximum restraint, dialogue, and diplomacy, supported full recognition of Palestine as a UN member state, and reiterated backing for a two-state solution.
• Middle East tensions among Iran, the United Arab Emirates, and India limited how ambitious the final declaration could be; the summit also enabled the first high-level contact between the UAE and Iran since the current conflict began.
• India was portrayed as the summit's biggest winner, with a final declaration balanced on sensitive issues and including explicit condemnation of the 2025 Pahalgam attack in Kashmir without directly naming Pakistan.