A key highlight on the first day of the 18th BRICS Summit in New Delhi was that Prime Minister Narendra Modi and leaders of the BRICS grouping posed for a family photograph and joined a sapling plantation ceremony on the lawns outside Bharat Mandapam on Saturday. Visuals shared by public broadcaster DD News showed the leaders holding hands for the traditional group photo, with Modi positioned between Russian President Vladimir Putin and Chinese President Xi Jinping, before moving outdoors to plant saplings and add soil and water as a symbolic gesture of cooperation.
The ceremonial moments came shortly after the bloc unanimously adopted the New Delhi Declaration 2026, announced by PM Modi following intense negotiations that included bridging differences between Iran and the UAE over tensions in West Asia. The declaration voiced deep concern over escalating tensions in the region, calling for maximum restraint, protection of civilians, and a return to dialogue and diplomacy, while also stressing the need to keep global trade, supply chains, and energy flows moving smoothly. It also condemned the Pahalgam terror attack, backed reform of the UN Security Council with a bigger voice for the Global South, and touched on cross-border payments in local currencies, AI governance, and competition policy.
Alongside PM Modi, the family photo and sapling plantation were attended by Russian President Vladimir Putin, Chinese President Xi Jinping, Indonesian President Prabowo Subianto, South African President Cyril Ramaphosa, Egyptian President Abdel Fattah el-Sisi, Iranian President Masoud Pezeshkian, Ethiopian Prime Minister Abiy Ahmed Ali, and Abu Dhabi Crown Prince Sheikh Khaled bin Mohamed bin Zayed Al Nahyan representing the UAE, with Brazil represented by Foreign Minister Mauro Vieira.
Earlier in the day, leaders had taken part in a closed-door session titled "Inclusive Global Governance and Strengthening Multilateralism" before visiting the Bharat Innovates exhibition. PM Modi also launched two postage stamps to mark 20 years since BRICS was founded, part of a summit built around the theme "Building for Resilience, Innovation, Cooperation and Sustainability." The day's proceedings were set to close with a gala dinner hosted by the Prime Minister. The 18th BRICS Summit runs across two days, September 12 and 13, with India holding the chair for 2026.
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