Xi Jinping Unveils Five-Point Initiative at 2026 BRICS Summit

On September 13, 2026, Chinese President Xi Jinping addressed the second session of the 18th BRICS Summit in New Delhi and presented a five-point programme aimed at deepening cooperation among the bloc’s members. The proposals include:

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1. BRICS AI Open-Source Community – China will lead the creation of an open-source AI ecosystem, support joint development of large-language models, and host AI seminars and training.

Hindustan Times

2. BRICS Digital-Ecosystem Cloud Platform – A shared cloud infrastructure to enable digital-industry cooperation, skills training, and technological exchange.

The Hindu

3. Intelligent Manufacturing Cooperation – Assistance to member states in building smart factories, establishing standards, and upgrading manufacturing processes.

The Hindu

4. BRICS Special-Economic-Zone Partnership – An “intelligent portal” for coordinated policy-setting and a new frontier for open development.

The Hindu

5. Science-and-Technology Talent Initiative – An engineer-cultivation alliance for joint development of engineers and mutual recognition of competency standards.

The Hindu

The BRICS grouping, originally five countries, has expanded to eleven members, including Iran, Indonesia, Egypt, Ethiopia, the United Arab Emirates and Saudi Arabia. Since 2013, President Xi has advocated a “BRICS Plus” model to broaden the bloc’s reach. The 2026 summit, hosted by India, provided a platform for China to position the initiative as a bridge between emerging economies and the Global South.

China will push for a 'Greater BRICS': Ex foreign secretary decodes Delhi summit, says test will come in 2027

• Intra-BRICS merchandise trade reached $1.17 trillion in 2024, a more than 13-fold increase since 2003 (UNCTAD).

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• The bloc’s members together account for ? 40 % of global GDP and ? 50 % of world population.

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• India’s trade deficit with BRICS partners widened to $226.1 billion in FY 2026, driven by imports of $321.8 billion. China supplied $131.6 billion of those imports.

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He called on BRICS members to “rally the Global South” and become a stabilising force in international affairs.

New Indian Express

Indian Prime Minister Narendra Modi stressed that BRICS is “not against anyone,” indicating India’s intention to keep the grouping constructive.

China will push for a 'Greater BRICS': Ex foreign secretary decodes Delhi summit, says test will come in 2027

China’s foreign ministry released the full text of Xi’s remarks, and Xinhua reported that Beijing will train young talent from other member states in advanced technology.

South China Morning Post

• “The logic of ‘might makes right’ does not hold, and should have been discarded long ago,” — Mr. Xi, Chinese president

The Hindu

The AI open-source community could provide lower-cost alternatives to U.S. platforms, offering emerging economies a more affordable entry point to advanced machine-learning tools. The intelligent-manufacturing programme aligns with China’s push to export smart-factory know-how, potentially reshaping supply-chain dynamics in the Global South.

Hindustan Times

Linking talent development with standards-recognition aims to reduce skills gaps that have limited deeper intra-BRICS trade, especially for countries like India with large import-heavy deficits.

CNN-News18

• 2027 BRICS Summit – China will assume the rotating presidency and advance the “Greater BRICS” agenda, including the AI open-source zone and special-economic-zone partnership.

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• September 21, 2026 (scheduled) – China plans to resume Delhi-Guangzhou flights, facilitating people-to-people and business exchanges.

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The initiatives announced on September 13, 2026 set the stage for a more technologically integrated BRICS, with the next year poised to test the bloc’s capacity to translate proposals into concrete outcomes.

The Hindu