Ministers who attended the Brics meeting. (Photo: Arun Sankar/AFP)
The war in Iran and the accompanying global fuel crisis dominated discussions at the Brics summit of foreign ministers in New Delhi on Thursday.
India hosted the two-day meeting of the expanded Brics group, which now also includes Iran, Saudi Arabia and the United Arab Emirates – countries with divergent interests regarding the conflict that began on February 28.
Subrahmanyam Jaishankar, India’s foreign minister, warned that the world was currently experiencing “great uncertainty”.
“Continued conflict, economic uncertainty and challenges with trade, technology and climate issues shape the global landscape,” Jaishankar said in his opening speech.
He added that many countries continue to experience challenges regarding energy, food, fertilizer and health security.
Among the ministers attending the summit are Iran’s Abbas Araghchi and Russia’s Sergei Lavrov.
The conflict in Iran is putting increasing pressure on global oil and gas markets, particularly due to disruptions around the Strait of Hormuz and other shipping routes in the Gulf region.
India, the world’s third largest buyer of crude oil, usually obtains about half of its oil through the Strait of Hormuz – a strategic waterway that has been repeatedly disrupted since the outbreak of the war.
Meanwhile, India has started relying on alternative suppliers, including Russia, to fill shortages, according to shipping and import data.
Jaishankar will also meet with Lavrov on Wednesday.
The Brics Summit which took place in Johannesburg in August 2023 (Photo: Jairus Mmutle/GCIS)
“Our political cooperation is even more valuable in an uncertain and volatile global environment,” Jaishankar said. According to him, the discussions focused, among other things, on trade, investment, energy and connection networks.
Meanwhile, Iran has indicated that the Strait of Hormuz is still open to commercial ships cooperating with the country’s navy.
“There is no such thing as a military solution to anything related to Iran,” Araghchi said in New Delhi.
“We Iranians do not bow to pressure or threats, but we do respond to respect.”
India’s Department of Foreign Affairs also condemned an attack on an Indian ship near Oman on Thursday. All crew members are safe.
“We regret that commercial ships and civilian seamen continue to be targeted,” the department said.
Brics was founded in 2009 as a forum for large emerging economies that wanted greater influence in international institutions traditionally dominated by Western powers.
The group originally consisted of Brazil, Russia, India, China and South Africa, but has since expanded to strengthen its political and economic influence worldwide.
In addition to South Africa, the group now also includes Egypt, Ethiopia, Iran, Saudi Arabia, Indonesia and the United Arab Emirates.
However, Wang Yi, China’s foreign minister, is not attending the summit because pres. Donald Trump was in Beijing on Thursday.
It is not yet clear whether the ministers will issue a joint statement at the end of the summit, as there is great division within the group, especially over the Middle East conflict and criticism of Western countries.