NEW DELHI — Chinese President Xi Jinping is heading to India for the 18th BRICS Summit, a high-stakes gathering that brings together some of the world’s most powerful and politically divided leaders as wars in the Middle East and Ukraine cast a long shadow over the expanded bloc.
Xi is attending the BRICS Summit in New Delhi on September 12 and 13 at the invitation of Indian Prime Minister Narendra Modi, according to China’s Foreign Ministry. The visit is particularly significant because it marks Xi’s first trip to India in years and comes amid a cautious improvement in relations between Asia’s two biggest powers.
But while the summit is expected to focus on economic cooperation, trade, technology and the role of developing nations in global affairs, geopolitical tensions could dominate discussions.
Russian President Vladimir Putin, Iranian President Masoud Pezeshkian and other BRICS leaders are also taking part in the gathering, placing the wars involving Ukraine and the Middle East at the center of an already complicated diplomatic agenda.
Xi-Modi Meeting Could Be One of the Summit’s Biggest Moments
One of the most closely watched developments at the BRICS Summit could be the interaction between Xi and Modi.
China and India have spent years locked in a tense rivalry fueled by border disputes, strategic competition and growing concerns over each other’s influence across Asia.
Relations plunged to one of their lowest points in decades following the deadly 2020 Galwan Valley clash between Indian and Chinese troops. At least 20 Indian soldiers and four Chinese soldiers were killed in the confrontation, the first fatal military clash between the two countries since 1975.
The crisis led India to tighten restrictions on Chinese investments, apps and travel links.
However, a disengagement agreement reached in October 2024 helped ease tensions, with troops withdrawing from several contested areas by the end of that year. Since then, both countries have gradually restored economic and people-to-people links.
Trade between the two Asian giants has also remained enormous. China became India’s largest source of imports during India’s 2025-26 fiscal year, with about $132 billion worth of goods flowing into the country, according to Reuters.
Despite the warming ties, major disputes remain unresolved.
Military forces are still deployed along parts of their disputed Himalayan border, while Beijing and New Delhi continue to clash over territorial claims, strategic influence in the Indo-Pacific and other regional security issues.
That means Xi’s arrival in New Delhi could represent an important diplomatic opening — but not necessarily a breakthrough.
BRICS Faces Its Toughest Unity Test Yet
The 2026 summit comes at a difficult moment for BRICS.
The bloc has expanded far beyond its original members — Brazil, Russia, India, China and South Africa — and now includes a wider and more politically diverse group of countries.
That expansion has increased BRICS’ global influence, but it has also made reaching consensus more difficult.
Wars in Ukraine and the Middle East are exposing those divisions.
Iran’s presence at the summit adds another layer of complexity as tensions in the region remain high. At the same time, Russia’s war in Ukraine continues to divide major powers and complicate global diplomacy.
Reports from several international outlets say India is expected to use its role as host to push dialogue and prevent geopolitical disputes from completely overshadowing the summit’s broader agenda.
The challenge for Modi will be enormous: keep rival leaders talking while trying to produce meaningful cooperation among countries with very different strategic interests.
Can BRICS Become a Real Global Power Center?
The New Delhi summit is also being closely watched because BRICS increasingly presents itself as a major voice for the Global South and a platform for countries seeking greater influence in a world traditionally dominated by Western powers.
Discussions are expected to include trade, financial cooperation, technology, supply chains and reforms to global institutions.
However, analysts have also warned that BRICS’ growing size does not automatically translate into greater unity.
Members often disagree on foreign policy, regional conflicts and economic priorities. Some maintain close ties with the United States and Western powers, while others have openly challenged the Western-led global order.
That raises a crucial question over the future of the bloc:
Can BRICS turn its growing membership into real geopolitical influence — or will its internal divisions prevent it from acting as a united force?
The summit in New Delhi may provide an early answer.
Xi’s India Visit Carries Global Significance
Xi’s visit is about more than BRICS.
It comes at a time when China and India are cautiously rebuilding relations after years of hostility, while both countries navigate an increasingly unstable global environment.
The two nations remain economic competitors and strategic rivals, but they also share interests in trade, regional stability and greater influence for developing economies.
International observers are now watching closely to see whether the summit produces concrete agreements — and whether Xi and Modi can push their fragile diplomatic thaw forward.
With Putin, Xi, Pezeshkian and other world leaders gathered in the Indian capital, the BRICS Summit has become more than an economic meeting.
It is now a major test of whether some of the world’s most powerful rivals can sit at the same table and find common ground while conflicts outside the summit threaten to reshape the global order.
And as Xi arrives in India, one question looms over New Delhi: Will this BRICS summit produce a new era of cooperation — or expose just how deep the divisions inside the bloc have become?
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