PM Modi Arrives in Brazil for BRICS 2025 Summit; Terrorism, Trade, and Climate Top India’s Agenda
Prime Minister Narendra Modi reached Brazil on Sunday (Saturday evening local time), marking the fourth stop of his ongoing five-nation diplomatic tour. After concluding high-profile visits to Ghana, Trinidad and Tobago, and Argentina, Modi landed in Rio de Janeiro to participate in the 2025 BRICS Summit—his longest foreign tour to date. He will next travel to Namibia.
This year’s summit will be notable for the absence of two key BRICS leaders—Chinese President Xi Jinping and Russian President Vladimir Putin—but the agenda remains ambitious and consequential.
India’s Priorities at BRICS 2025
PM Modi will push for a strong, unequivocal condemnation of terrorism, with a particular emphasis on the April 22 Pahalgam terror attack in Jammu and Kashmir, which claimed 26 lives, mostly tourists. The Rio Declaration is expected to reflect this stance.
India is also expected to:
-
Highlight Operation Sindoor, launched on May 7 in retaliation for the attack, targeting terror infrastructure in Pakistan-occupied Jammu and Kashmir.
-
Advocate for a framework on climate finance, including sustainable funding mechanisms for developing countries.
-
Promote collaboration in artificial intelligence, particularly in responsible development and ethical governance.
-
Push a health equity initiative to address disparities across BRICS nations.
-
Reiterate its support for trade settlement in national currencies to reduce reliance on the US dollar.
BRICS Response to Trump’s Trade Policies
The summit is also poised to issue a strong statement against U.S. trade protectionism. According to a leaked draft declaration reported by AFP, BRICS leaders plan to criticize “unilateral tariff and non-tariff measures”, widely interpreted as a reference to President Donald Trump’s trade policies.
While the draft does not name the U.S. directly, it warns that such actions:
-
Are inconsistent with WTO rules
-
Distort global trade
-
Threaten global economic growth
With BRICS representing half the world’s population and 40% of global output, the joint opposition to protectionism underlines the bloc’s desire to shape a more equitable global order.
What Lies Ahead
Despite the absence of Xi and Putin, the 2025 BRICS summit is set to be a pivotal moment for the bloc’s future. With expanding agendas—from counterterrorism to climate action—and India’s increasingly assertive diplomatic posture, the Rio summit could redefine the bloc’s direction in a rapidly polarizing global landscape.
Comments are closed.