On September 9, 2021, amidst Corona times, Indian Prime Minister Narendra Modi chaired the 13th BRICS Summit through video conferencing. The theme of the Summit was “BRICS@15: Intra-BRICS Cooperation for Continuity, Consolidation and Consensus.” The theme was chosen by India reflecting the fifteenth anniversary of BRICS, being observed in 2021. This has been the third time that India hosted the BRICS Summit (earlier Presidency was in 2012 and 2016) and the second time Modi has chaired the BRICS Summit after the Goa Summit in 2016. Indian Chairmanship of BRICS in 2021 coincides with the 15th anniversary of BRICS and that is a pleasure.
The BRICS is the acronym which implies an association of five major emerging economies comprising Brazil, Russia, India, China and South Africa. The Summit saw the participation of all BRICS Leaders– President Jair Bolsonaro of Brazil, President Vladimir Putin of Russia, Prime Minister Narendra Modi of India, President Xi Jinping of China, and President Cyril Ramaphosa of South Africa.
As the President of BRICS in 2021, India highlighted four priority areas for its Chairmanship: Reform of the Multilateral System, Counter-Terrorism cooperation, Using Digital and Technological Tools to achieve the Sustainable Development Goals (SDG) and Enhancing People to People exchanges. PM Modi affirmed to make BRICS more productive in the next 15 years.
Modi expressed appreciation for the cooperation received from BRICS partners during India’s Chairmanship this year. It allowed BRICS to achieve several new initiatives: the first BRICS Digital Health Summit; the first BRICS Ministerial Joint Statement on multilateral reforms; a BRICS Counter-Terrorism Action Plan; an Agreement on cooperation in field of remote-sensing satellites; a virtual BRICS vaccine Research & Development Centre; and BRICS Alliance on Green Tourism. Modi expected BRICS countries to play a leading role in the post-COVID global recovery. He called for enhanced BRICS cooperation under the motto ‘Build-back Resiliently, Innovatively, Credibly and sustainably’.
Modi stressed accelerating ‘build-back’ by enhancing speed and accessibility of vaccination, creating ‘resilience’ by diversifying pharma and vaccine production capacities beyond the developed world, fostering ‘innovation’ by creatively using digital tools for public good, ensuring reform of multilateral institutions to enhance their ‘credibility’, and promoting ‘sustainable’ development by articulating a common BRICS voice on environmental and climate issues.
The leaders also discussed important regional and global issues, including recent developments in Afghanistan, the priority of fighting terrorism, extremism of terror organizations using Afghanistan as a sanctuary, and accelerating implementation of the BRICS Action Plan on Counter-Terrorism. The BRICS leaders said that they were cognizant of the threats emanating from terrorism, extremism conducive to terrorism and radicalization. “We commit to combating terrorism in all its forms and manifestations, including the cross-border movement of terrorists, and terrorism financing networks and safe havens.”
As regards the situation in Afghanistan, BRICS called for refraining from violence and settling the situation by peaceful means. We stress the need to contribute to fostering an inclusive intra-Afghan dialogue so as to ensure stability, civil peace, law and order in the country. The BRICS also underscore the priority of fighting terrorism, including preventing attempts by terrorist organisations to use Afghan territory as terrorist sanctuary and to carry out attacks against other countries, as well as drug trade within Afghanistan. The BRICS also emphasised the need to address the humanitarian situation and to uphold human rights, including those of women, children and minorities.
At the conclusion of the Summit, leaders adopted the “New Delhi Declaration” and pledged to reform the multilateral system to make global governance more responsive and effective. It called for refraining from violence, settling conflicts by peaceful means, and fostering an inclusive intra-Afghan dialogue to ensure stability, peace, law and order. The New Delhi Declaration reiterated the commitment of the BRICS countries “to enhancing intra-BRICS cooperation under the three pillars – political and security, economic and financial, and cultural & people-to-people exchanges. The Declaration read, “ Recalling our shared values of peace, rule of law, respect for human rights and fundamental freedoms and democracy for all, we pledge to promote a more inclusive, equitable and representative multipolar international system with the United Nations at its centre, based on international law and purposes and principles of the UN Charter, in particular the sovereign equality of all States and respect for their territorial integrity, with the aim to build a brighter shared future for the international community based on mutually beneficial cooperation”. The BRICS nations also called for reforms of the principal organs of the United Nations including instilling new life in the discussions on the reform of the UN Security Council (UNSC). Modi praised that for the first time, stating that the BRICS has taken collective position on strengthening and reforming multilateral systems. It was the first time that BRICS took a shared position on “Strengthening and Improving Multilateral Systems”.
Modi told that 4 Cs – ‘Cooperation, Continuity, Consolidation and Consensus’- are basic principles of the BRICS partnership. He mentioned how the recently held first “BRICS Digital Health Conference” was an innovative step to increase health access with the help of technology. Water Resources Ministers are meeting in November, 2021, for the first time in BRICS format.
The BRICS Declaration emphasised that the international community has a collective responsibility to work together against the COVID-19 pandemic in the true spirit of partnership within existing international frameworks including the World Health Organisation. The BRICS noted that the cooperation on study of origins of the SARS-COV-2 is an important aspect of the fight against the COVID-19 pandemic and supported science-based, inclusive of broad expertise, transparent, and timely processes, free from politicization or interference, to strengthen international capabilities to better understand the emergence of novel pathogens and to help prevent future pandemics.
Despite Covid situation this year, over 150 BRICS meetings including over 20 Ministerial-level events were organised. India has expanded the BRICS agenda. The BRICS achieved many firsts this year and made many achievements in the last one and a half decades. Now it is an influential voice for the emerging economies of the world. The BRICS platform has also been useful for focusing on the priorities of developing countries.
India criticised how the Organisation of Islamic Cooperation (OIC) has “helplessly” allowed itself to be held “hostage” by Islamabad by raising the Kashmir issue at the UN Human Rights Commission. The meeting was also attended by India’s National Security Adviser Ajit Doval, President of the New Development Bank Marcos Troyjo, the pro tempore Chair of the BRICS Business Council, Onkar Kanwar and pro tempore Chair of the BRICS Women’s Business Alliance, Sangita Reddy for presenting reports on the outcomes pursued this year under their respective tracks to the leaders during the Summit.
India under PM Modi has emerged as a world leader. In the eyes of the world community respect for India has gone up by several notches. The momentum must be maintained for good.
By Dr. Ankit Srivastava, Chief Editor
Email: ankits@newdelhitimes.com
Twitter: @ankitndt
Photo Credit : Getty Images
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