At the BRICS 2026 Summit in Delhi, Prime Minister Narendra Modi and fellow BRICS leaders planted a banyan tree, presented as a symbol of the grouping’s roots, expansion and shared future.
Key moments from the 18th BRICS Summit in New Delhi, including leaders’ interactions, the banyan tree ceremony, bilateral engagements, the BRICS Bazaar, and the adoption of the New Delhi Declaration.
The 2026 BRICS New Delhi Summit has renewed attention to the Russia-India-China axis, with BRICS serving as a broader multilateral framework to manage bilateral frictions and expand cooperation.
BRICS leaders endorsed deeper cooperation on taxation and customs, including new working groups, a customs agreement, and joint enforcement initiatives under India’s chairship.
BRICS countries reaffirmed their commitment to prevent and combat corruption through the New Delhi Declaration, welcoming new mechanisms on asset recovery, fugitive offender tracing, and law enforcement cooperation.
Rosatom CEO Alexey Likhachev said nuclear cooperation has become an important pillar of BRICS partnership, helping member states address economic, technological, and supply-chain challenges.
BRICS participants condemned unilateral coercive measures outside the UN framework and called for their removal, saying they harm human rights and disproportionately affect vulnerable populations.
BRICS leaders adopted the New Delhi Declaration, agreeing to create a farmer-centric agro-inputs and information network and to continue developing a BRICS grain trading platform.
From demanding representation within the existing order to helping shape the rules of the next one, the New Delhi Declaration may mark an important step in that transition.
