The 17th annual BRICS summit opened on Sunday in Rio de Janeiro, Brazil, under the theme “Strengthening Global South Cooperation for More Inclusive and Sustainable Governance.”
Brazil, which holds the bloc’s rotating presidency this year, has outlined six key agenda items: global health cooperation, trade and investment, climate change, multilateral peace and security, financial frameworks, and strengthening the institutional capacity of BRICS.
The summit is being attended by delegations from the bloc’s 10 full members: Brazil, Russia, China, India, South Africa, Iran, Indonesia, the United Arab Emirates, Egypt, and Ethiopia. Saudi Arabia, which has been invited to join but has yet to fully integrate, is also participating. Additional dialogue partners and “Global South” observer states are expected as well.
Despite the high-level nature of the meeting, a number of prominent leaders are absent from this year’s gathering. Russian President Vladimir Putin, Chinese President Xi Jinping, and Iranian President Masoud Pezeshkian are among the most notable no-shows.
Putin’s absence is likely tied to the International Criminal Court (ICC) arrest warrant issued against him, as Brazil is a signatory to the Rome Statute. Pezeshkian, meanwhile, is likely avoiding long-distance travel following Iran’s recent 12-day conflict with Israel and the United States, during which Israeli officials openly admitted to attempting to assassinate Iran’s Supreme Leader, Ayatollah Ali Khamenei.
China’s Xi Jinping has not publicly disclosed his reasons for skipping the summit, though analysts speculate that caution about attending an event hosted in what the U.S. considers its geopolitical “backyard” may have influenced the decision.
Geographic distance is also likely a factor, with Brazil located far from Eurasia, where the majority of BRICS members reside. Still, the absence of several heads of state has cast a shadow over the summit, raising questions about bloc cohesion under Brazil’s leadership.
Another topic expected to loom large in the discussions is how BRICS will respond to U.S. President Donald Trump’s increasingly aggressive trade policies. Trump has previously warned of imposing 100% tariffs on BRICS nations if they move away from the U.S. dollar in favor of alternative currencies or payment systems.
Brazil’s presidency of BRICS this year has been met with skepticism from some member states. Reports in regional media over the past several months suggest that certain members view Brazil as the bloc’s weak link, citing its geographic proximity to the U.S. and perceived susceptibility to Western political and economic influence.
Despite these tensions, BRICS continues to position itself as a counterweight to Western-dominated institutions, aiming to elevate the voice of the Global South and promote multipolar governance in an increasingly fragmented world.