BRICS: The gears of change keep grinding

As the group gathers for its 18th annual summit, the long and meticulous work to create new financial infrastructure continues BRICS leaders are meeting in New Delhi this weekend for the group’s 18th annual summit.India took over the rotating chair of the group in January and has adopted a different tone. Rhetoric about de-dollarization and overhauling the current financial system has taken a back seat to more practical considerations of economic connectivity.The summit comes against a mixed backdrop. On the one hand, Chinese President Xi Jinping will be in attendance in what will be his first visit to ⁠India in seven years. This underscores the importance Beijing attaches to BRICS. Also traveling to Delhi is Russian President Vladimir Putin.On the other hand, recently joined BRICS members UAE and Iran have found themselves on opposite sides of the hostilities in the Middle East. A two-day meeting of BRICS foreign ministers in New Delhi in May concluded without a joint statement due to divergent views on the Middle East, and this weekend’s summit will be taking place in the shadow of this tension.Nevertheless, as trade ties among key BRICS countries keep growing, the methodical wor...