BRICS foreign ministers convene in New Delhi as Iran‑UAE war strains bloc unity

Iran and the United Arab Emirates have entered an open military confrontation after a series of attacks on oil‑refining and petrochemical facilities, including a strike on Iran’s offshore refinery on Lavan Island. The United Arab Emirates responded with air raids, while the United States and Israel have also been accused of targeting Iranian sites.

Amid the conflict, the BRICS group of emerging economies held a foreign‑ministers summit in New Delhi, where India, as the current chair, hosted representatives from core members – China, Russia, Brazil, South Africa, Iran, Ethiopia, the UAE, Indonesia and Egypt – and a wider list of partner countries. India faces a diplomatic dilemma, balancing its ties with Israel and its large expatriate community in the Gulf against its role as BRICS chair.

China and Russia publicly called for an end to the fighting and condemned the U.S.‑Israel strikes, urging the bloc to issue a joint statement condemning the escalation. The meeting is seen as a test of BRICS cohesion and could influence global energy markets, given the bloc’s reliance on oil imports from the Persian Gulf.