Eleven member states including Russia's Sergey Lavrov gathered under Jaishankar's chair; delegations called on PM Modi at Seva Teerth between sessions on global governance reforms.
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India opened the 18th BRICS Foreign Ministers' Meeting at Bharat Mandapam, New Delhi on May 14, 2026, chaired by External Affairs Minister S. Jaishankar. Delegations from all eleven BRICS members — Brazil, China, Egypt, Ethiopia, India, Indonesia, Iran, Russia, Saudi Arabia, South Africa and the UAE — joined the first session at 10:30 a.m., called on Prime Minister Narendra Modi at Seva Teerth at 1 p.m., and resumed for a second session at 3:10 p.m. Russian Foreign Minister Sergey Lavrov was confirmed for both days. India's 2026 chairship theme: 'Building for Resilience, Innovation, Cooperation and Sustainability.'
The eleven-flag table makes the Delhi gathering BRICS' most consequential since its 2024 expansion. S. Jaishankar chairs; Sergey Lavrov brings Moscow's Ukraine and Iran-war agenda; China's foreign minister carries Beijing's Trump-Xi briefing; and Iran's delegation lobbies for a more aggressive de-dollarisation push after recent strikes on its territory. Saudi Arabia and the UAE — added in the 2024 expansion — anchor the Gulf bloc, while Egypt, Ethiopia and Indonesia provide a wider Global-South cross-section. Brazil and South Africa hold the founding-members memory. PM Modi hosts the entire group at Seva Teerth between sessions.
Delhi is the first ministerial under India's 2026 chairship, and the timing matters. The meeting sits against the backdrop of the ongoing Iran war and a parallel Trump-Xi summit in Beijing where trade, Iran and Taiwan are reportedly on the table. India wants BRICS to articulate a non-Western position on Iran without splitting the bloc along China-vs-Saudi or Russia-vs-Indonesia lines. The chairship theme — 'Building for Resilience, Innovation, Cooperation and Sustainability' — is designed to keep the conversation on governance reform and Global-South development rather than letting it collapse into a great-power referendum.
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Three deliverables hang on the second day. First, a 'BRICS at 20' session that frames how the group narrates its first two decades as it approaches its anniversary year. Second, language on global-governance reform — UNSC, IMF voting weights, World Bank presidency rotations — that the Delhi communique can carry into the Leaders' Summit India is expected to host later this year. Third, a position on the Iran war that does not fracture the bloc. India will measure success not by headlines but by whether the eleven foreign ministers leave Bharat Mandapam with a single signed communique on Friday afternoon.
Chronology
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At 1 p.m. on May 14, all BRICS delegations called on Prime Minister Narendra Modi at Seva Teerth — the formal bilateral courtesy that signals India's chairship priorities to each foreign minister directly.
The second session opened at 3:10 p.m., focused on regional flashpoints including the Iran war, and concluded with a dinner hosted by Jaishankar at 7 p.m. that doubled as informal negotiation space for the Friday communique.
Foreign ministers and senior officials from all eleven BRICS member countries arrived at Bharat Mandapam in New Delhi on the morning of May 14, with External Affairs Minister S. Jaishankar greeting Russia's Sergey Lavrov and China's foreign minister among the first.
The first session began at 10:30 a.m. on May 14 with Jaishankar in the chair, framing the day's agenda around governance reform and the 'Building for Resilience, Innovation, Cooperation and Sustainability' theme. Delegations exchanged opening statements on global and regional issues.
On May 15 the third and final session begins at 10 a.m., framed around 'BRICS at 20' and global-governance reform. India will press for a single signed communique that carries forward into the Leaders' Summit it is set to host later in 2026.
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