UN chief Antonio Guterres to attend BRICS Summit in New Delhi

UN Secretary-General Antonio Guterres will attend the BRICS Summit in New Delhi on September 12 and 13. His visit adds diplomatic weight to India's chairship as the bloc marks its 20th anniversary.

In Short

• India will host the gathering at Bharat Mandapam on September 12-13
• The summit theme focuses on resilience, innovation, cooperation and sustainability
• More than 350 engagements across 25 cities advanced practical BRICS cooperation

UN Secretary-General Antonio Guterres will take part in the 18th BRICS Summit in New Delhi later this month. India, which holds the BRICS chair this year, will host the summit at Bharat Mandapam on September 12 and 13.

Guterres' participation was indicated by his spokesman, Stephane Dujarric, at a press briefing on Tuesday. He said, "... we have yet to officially announce that the secretary-general will participate in the BRICS meeting in New Delhi in about 10 days' time." He was replying to a question on possible meetings between Guterres and Prime Minister Narendra Modi, Chinese leader Xi Jinping and Russian President Vladimir Putin during the Shanghai Cooperation Organisation Summit in Kyrgyzstan on August 31 and September 1.

According to the Ministry of External Affairs, the BRICS summit will bring together leaders of BRICS member and partner countries, along with outreach invitees. The theme of India's BRICS chairship is 'Building for Resilience, Innovation, Cooperation and Sustainability'.

The MEA said more than 350 meetings and high-level engagements have been held in over 25 cities across India to strengthen the BRICS strategic partnership across three pillars: political and security, economic and financial, and cultural and people-to-people exchanges. It said these engagements, along with business-to-business and people-to-people initiatives, have contributed to advancing BRICS cooperation through practical and development-oriented outcomes.

India, a founding member of BRICS, previously held the chairship in 2012, 2016 and 2021. It assumed its fourth BRICS chairship on January 1, 2026. BRICS is also celebrating its 20th anniversary this year.

Guterres, whose second five-year term as UN chief ends in December 2026, had visited India in February to attend the India-AI Impact Summit 2026 in New Delhi. The event was the first global AI summit to be hosted in the Global South.

In Bishkek, Guterres also met Iranian President Masoud Pezeshkian on the sidelines of the SCO Summit. His spokesman said the UN chief expressed concern over the devastating humanitarian and economic consequences of the conflict in Iran, in the region and beyond. He stressed the urgent need to resolve the conflict through dialogue and negotiations, with full respect for international law, including international navigational rights and freedoms in and around the Strait of Hormuz. Guterres also reaffirmed the UN's commitment to support all diplomatic efforts aimed at a comprehensive and durable solution.

Putin and Pezeshkian are among the leaders set to arrive in New Delhi for the BRICS summit, while Xi is also widely expected to attend before travelling to the US for a summit meeting with President Donald Trump later this month. The summit will take place as India marks its fourth BRICS chairship and hosts leaders from member, partner and invited countries in the capital.

With PTI Inputs

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