BRICS Delhi Declaration: Consensus on War but no clarity on climate action
The Delhi declaration found common ground on diplomacy, terrorism and trade, but left difficult questions on climate action, deforestation and energy security unanswered. As ecological pressures mount, BRICS must move beyond declarations and develop concrete strategies to protect forests, biodiversity and vulnerable regions
Like the G20 2023 Delhi Declaration, which was achieved amid the escalating Russia-Ukraine war and stated that all states should refrain from using force for territorial acquisition without specifically mentioning Russia, BRICS members at the 2026 Delhi gathering also achieved a joint communique. The joint statement prioritised dialogue and diplomacy to resolve disputes, prevent civilian casualties and damage to infrastructure, respect the sovereignty and territorial integrity of all states, and exercise maximum restraint over continued escalation. The continuing Gulf war and tensions between the UAE and Iran had cast a shadow over the joint communique, but Indian Prime Minister Narendra Modi’s bilateral meeting with Iranian President Pezeshkian changed the course, and it was finally achieved.
On the issue of United Nations Security Council expansion, the joint statement mentioned the support of China and Russia for the aspirations of India and Brazil to play a greater role in the UN, including the Security Council. The members reaffirmed their commitment to combating terrorism in all its forms and manifestations, including the cross-border movement of terrorists, terrorism financing and safe havens. It also condemned the Pahalgam terrorist attack. The declaration denounced unilateral sanctions and tariffs imposed in contravention of WTO rules. All members openly hit out at the Western bloc over this. The indiscriminate increase in tariffs and non-tariff measures, or protectionism in the garb of achieving environmental objectives, reduces trade, disrupts global supply chains, brings uncertainty to trade and commerce, and exacerbates existing economic disparities.
BRICS found that the EU’s Carbon Border Adjustment Mechanism (CBAM) undermines efforts by developing countries to address the adverse effects of climate change. While recognising the need to cut greenhouse gas emissions to meet climate goals, members sought to delink the collection of CBAM taxes from imports of carbon-intensive goods, such as cement, iron and aluminium, entering the 27 EU nations. This move by the EU has previously been opposed by the grouping, which said that the unilateral measure places an additional burden on businesses in developing economies because of the embedded emissions in their products. They reiterated in the Delhi Declaration that such measures are “discriminatory, punitive and protectionist measures that are not in line with international law”. The Global South should stand together and impose a carbon legacy tax on developed nations, which are responsible for warming the planet and the consequent climatic catastrophes.
Regarding climate action in response to the Paris Climate Accord, the group called for greater action from the Western bloc based on equity and the UN principle of common but differentiated responsibilities and respective capabilities, based on different national circumstances. Though four BRICS countries — Russia, the UAE, Iran and Saudi Arabia — are major global exporters of fossil fuels, the group highlighted the need to enhance energy security by maintaining an uninterrupted flow of oil and gas, including refined products.
On the conservation front, the declaration said, “We underscore the critical role of all types of forests, including boreal and tropical forests, for conserving biodiversity, water basins and soils and providing timber and non-timber forest products of high value for economic sectors, regulating hydrological cycles as well as combating desertification, land degradation and drought, and serving as vital carbon sinks…….. We also welcome the adoption of BRICS principles for ‘Integrated landscape-based greening and land restoration and common understanding for Wildfire preparedness and response across BRICS countries’…….” Countries have failed to control wildfires; no roadmap is laid out in the declaration.
On the issue of biodiversity conservation, the declaration said, “…….. We urge developed countries to provide financial resources to developing countries to improve capacity-building and transfer of technology for conservation, sustainable use and fair and equitable sharing of benefits arising from the use of biodiversity. While appreciating the efforts of our countries to preserve rare species and noting the high vulnerability of big cats, we take note of the Republic of India’s initiative to create an International Big Cat Alliance and encourage BRICS countries to work together for the conservation of big cats.”
The presence of indigenous communities in the boreal and Amazon regions, important lung spaces, has accelerated deforestation. Countries continue to explore oil, gas and minerals in these regions, causing damage to tree growth and melting permafrost. Scientists have concluded that the region is warming at four times the pace of the average rise in global temperature. Snow and ice formation is declining, and glaciers are melting. Snow and glaciers have the capacity to reflect 80 per cent of incident radiation and absorb only 20 per cent. In contrast, soil and water absorb 80 per cent of solar radiation and reflect only 20 per cent. The warming in the Arctic region is thus unprecedented.
The tree line between boreal forests and the Arctic region is also shifting northwards. This does not mean that the forests we lose in the south of the boreal forests through logging and industrial activities are being made up for by the shifting tree line. The gain is far too negligible compared with the loss. Wildfires also devastate the region during the summer months. BRICS nations had no plan to reverse or halt the trend.
A substantial portion of the Amazon rainforest is in Brazil, and indigenous communities have been given a free hand to occupy forest land for soybean cultivation and rearing animals for meat. During COP30 at Belém, the Brazilian Government moved to create a fund to compensate indigenous communities for alternative livelihoods and preserve tropical forests. The proposal failed to be adopted at Belém. BRICS countries are custodians of some of the world’s best boreal and tropical forests; no effort is shown to have been made in the Delhi Declaration to end deforestation.
The ongoing conflict in West Asia, including the recent Houthi attacks on Saudi Arabia and Trump’s refusal to respond and protect Saudi interests, has disrupted the flow of oil and gas, and Brent crude prices have already surpassed $100 a barrel. Both the Strait of Hormuz and Bab el-Mandeb remain choked. The Indian economy, being heavily dependent on energy imports, would have grown even better but for the disruptions. BRICS countries should have announced a strategy to accelerate the transition to renewable energy. China is a leader in solar and wind technologies as well as rare-earth processing. China must come forward to assist other BRICS members and countries of the Global South in developing green energy at a faster pace. The bilateral meeting on the sidelines of the summit between Chinese President Xi Jinping and Indian Prime Minister Narendra Modi has shown a great bonhomie, but the tough question remains: why is there no progress on troop disengagement from the borders in Arunachal Pradesh and Ladakh? After the Galwan incident in May 2020, the two leaders met in Kazan in October 2024 and announced certain measures to improve relations. People-to-people contact has moved ahead in terms of the resumption of flights and visits to Kailash Mansarovar, among other things, but the trade deficit between the two countries is growing. We have a world-class pharmaceutical and services sector, yet China has not opened its market. On the contrary, China’s assistance to Pakistan on the battlefield during Operation Sindoor, and its construction of the world’s biggest hydropower project in Tibet, where the river Yarlung Tsangpo takes a sharp U-turn before entering India, demonstrate what the writer describes as its high-handedness. Chinese hydrologists have studied and reported that all construction sites for this project are unstable. The region is seismically prone, and earthquakes have devastated it in the past.
The devastation that happened in Nepal on August 26 was something for BRICS member countries to take note of. Eleven years ago, Nepal faced an earthquake in which more than 9,000 people perished. Scientists have said that the Himalayas are warming at twice the pace at which the rest of the globe is warming. The glacier that broke off and fell vertically into the river course carried all the construction debris dumped by China and devastated the floodplains of the Trishuli River. Should China not take stock of the situation and halt the construction?
The substantial portion of Amazon forests is in Brazil and indigenous communities get free hand to occupy forest land for soyabean cultivation and raring animals for meat. During CoP 30 at Belem, Brazil government moved to create fund for compensating indigenous communities for alternative livelihood and preserve tropical forests
B K Singh, Retired Head of Forest Force, Karnataka; Views presented are personal.
