The Contents of the Declaration

The 17th BRICS summit in Brazil is over. It raised a series of issues that concern the world, not just the global south that it represents in all forms and manifestations. And it is time for the world, especially the West, to listen and to respond in the spirit of accommodation, not confrontation. India has spoken for humanity, peace and world order with a call for fighting terrorism and also joining the summit leaders in expressing concern over targeting the civilians and nuclear facilities for the overall safety cover for humanity.

There are several ways of looking at the summit held in Rio de Janeiro, the seaside city of the largest South American country – Brazil. The summit holds a mirror to global leadership; the West will have to understand that the existence of other groupings is as important as their own. The Declaration, if read carefully, has two parts – one, the way the Global South perceives the global institutions controlled by the West, and second, a clear piece of advice that these institutions should be democratised.

In this summit, Prime Minister Narendra Modi was very clear on two vital aspects: the Global South, representing 6 billion people, cannot be left unheard, and the world must take cognisance of what it says – India is the leading voice of this forum.

Second, there is a call for an all-out war against terrorism, which has become necessary to save the world from the menace that can trigger wider conflicts which threaten global peace and security. PM Modi reiterated his counter-terrorism doctrine of zero tolerance toward terrorism, which found its resounding echo in the joint declaration of the summit.

The most important part was that India led by example, showing what global leadership is not just in style but in substance too. It has given a solid mantra to the global south: how to stand for itself without suffering from complexes of the colonial past and to tell erstwhile imperialistic forces that neo-imperialism is unacceptable in the 21st century. India represents this soulful thought and articulation in letter and spirit.

In his speech at the BRICS summit, the prime minister termed terrorism as “the most serious challenge facing humanity today”. While referring to the April 22nd Pahalgam attack in which 26 innocent civilians were killed, he described it as a “direct assault on the soul, identity and dignity of India.”

Placing it in the global context, the prime minister made the world take note of the fact: “The attack is not just a blow to India but to the entire humanity.” The idea was that terrorism is not confined to a particular place or people; it has wider ramifications that touch the whole world. In a way, the prime minister underlined that each act of terror in any part of the world, especially the civilised one, should not be taken as a lesser threat than it was at the time of 9/11. America had summoned all its resources to punish terrorists, the masterminds of which, including the Al-Qaeda supermo Osama bin Laden, were traced in Pakistan.

Modi summed up this concept in words that ‘condemning terrorism must be a matter of principle, and not just of convenience. If our response depends on where or against whom the attack occurred, it shall be a betrayal of humanity itself.” Alongside, he posed a very serious question to the world:if it cannot combine words and actions against terrorism, then it must be asked “whether we are serious about fighting terrorism”. In the same line, he stated that there must be “no hesitation in imposing sanctions on terrorists – the victims and supporters of terrorism cannot be treated equally.”

PM’s message resonated in the joint statement of the BRICS leaders, who expressed strong condemnation of any acts of terrorism as criminal and unjustifiable, regardless of their motivation, whenever, wherever and by whomever committed. They emphatically added, “We condemn in the strongest terms the terrorist attack in Jammu and Kashmir on 22 April, 2025, during which 26 people were killed and many more injured. We reaffirm our commitment to combating terrorism in all its forms and manifestations, including the cross-border movement of terrorists, terrorism financing and safe havens…. We urge you to ensure zero tolerance of terrorism and reject double standards in countering terrorism.”

This was a big diplomatic win for India, as just last week defence minister Rajnath Singh refused to sign the Shanghai Cooperation Organisation’s declaration for not including the terror attack in Pahalgam, Jammu and Kashmir, on April 22. BRICS, on the other hand, reaffirmed commitment to combating terrorism in all its forms and manifestations, including cross-border movement, terror financing and safe havens.

The rest of the declaration referred to the polarisation and fragmentation of the world. It did not mince words in targeting the so-called superpowers without naming them.

The joint statement stated it categorically: “We condemn the military strikes against the Islamic Republic of Iran since 13 June 2025, which constitute a violation of international law and the Charter of the United Nations, and express our grave concern over the subsequent escalation of the security situation in the Middle East.” More significantly, the joint statement voiced its “serious concern over deliberate attacks on civilian infrastructure and peaceful nuclear facilities under the full safeguards of the International Atomic Energy Agency (IAEA), in violation of international law and relevant resolutions of the IAEA”.

It went on to register its point with an extra emphasis that “nuclear safeguards, safety and security must always be upheld, including in armed conflicts, to protect people and the environment from harm. In this context, we reiterate our support for diplomatic initiatives aimed at addressing regional challenges ”and threw the ball in the court of the United Nations Security Council to deal with the matter.

It placed the US, though indirectly, in the spotlight. American planes, under its operation, Midnight Hammer, on June 22, had attacked three key Iranian nuclear facilities – Fordow, Natanz and Isfahan. This had led to escalation in the situation and raised alarm across the globe. This could have led to catastrophic consequences.

India has reiterated its position at BRICS, and the next stop is the G20 summit in Johannesburg, South Africa, in November.