The 18th BRICS Summit, held in the Indian capital of New Delhi on September 12-13, 2026, has called for the establishment of a sovereign Palestine. In the Delhi Declaration, the BRICS member-countries have explicitly mentioned their firm opposition to the forced displacement of Palestinians and any demographic or geographic alterations in the Gaza Strip and Occupied Palestinian Territory. The bloc has also called for an end to the genocide in Gaza and reaffirmed backing for a two-state solution, a sovereign Palestinian State based on 1967 borders and full UN membership for Palestine. At the same time, the international organisation of 11 major emerging economies and developing countries (Brazil, Russia, China, South Africa, Egypt, Ethiopia, Indonesia, Iran, Saudi Arabia and the United Arab Emirates) urged the Jewish Nation to ensure unhindered aid delivery to the Gaza Strip in compliance with international law.

It may be noted that Priyanka Gandhi Vadra, a member of the Indian National Congress (the main Opposition party), carried a tote bag, featuring the word Palestine and a watermelon graphic, into the Indian Parliament on December 16, 2024. The action followed her meeting with Palestine’s Ambassador to India Abed Elrazeg Abu Jazer at her residence. The Palestinian diplomat had congratulated Vadra on winning a Parliamentary By-election from the Wayanad Constituency.

Prior to that, Vadra had condemned Israel’s attacks on Gaza as genocide aimed at wiping out the existence of an entire nation. At that time, the Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) of Indian Prime Minister Narendra Modi alleged that Vadra was trying to send a communal message to the followers of Islam in India. Following the adoption of the Delhi Declaration at the 18th BRICS Summit hosted by India, the INC has challenged the top BJP leadership to reconcile its close bilateral relationship with Israel with the strong pro-Palestine consensus reached at the summit.

Although the BJP has not commented on this matter, Salman Khurshid, the Chairperson of the INC’s Foreign Affairs Department and former External Affairs Minister of India, has explicitly welcomed the inclusion and consensus on Gaza and Palestine in the Delhi Declaration, stressing: “I think that we can all welcome it. It seems very comprehensive and well-drafted. The good thing is that despite the fact that there were some very contentious and conflict-ridden issues that were surfacing, a consensus statement has been accepted by everyone. I think we should welcome that.“

The INC has further issued a statement, mentioning that the Narendra Modi Administration has softened its stance on the Israel-Palestine conflict. The Opposition party has claimed that a firm stance in support of Palestine was adopted in the BRICS Declaration from Rio in 2025. However, the Indian Prime Minister left for a visit to Israel immediately after attending the 17th BRICS Summit in Brazil. The INC has alleged that although the Modi Government speaks about West Asia now, it does not condemn the Israeli atrocities in Gaza.

M A Baby, the General Secretary of the Communist Party of India (Marxist), and D Raja, the General Secretary of the Communist Party of India (CPI), too, have welcomed the Delhi Declaration for backing Palestinian rights, statehood and a peaceful resolution to the conflict. However, Baby has stated that there is a prominent contradiction and divergence between the newly-adopted Delhi Declaration 2026 and the actual foreign policy trajectory of the Modi Government. “The government must move beyond lip service and recalibrate India’s foreign policy to stand with Palestine, Iran, Cuba, Venezuela and other countries targeted by US aggression and sanctions,” said the senior Communist leader.

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Published by Koushik Das

Koushik Das (born on May 16, 1976 in Kolkata) is a career journalist. Based in the Indian capital of New Delhi, Koushik writes mainly about foreign policies and current geopolitical issues, and rarely about other topics. His own political ideas are highly influenced by Antonio Gramsci, Louis Althusser, Michel Foucault, Michael Oakeshott and others. English philosopher and political theorist Oakeshott (Dec 11, 1901-Dec 19, 1990) says that “in political activity, men sail a boundless and bottomless sea. There is neither harbour for shelter nor floor for anchorage, neither starting-place, nor appointed destination. But we have to keep afloat”. (Rationalism in Politics, 1962) As a student of Political Science, Koushik loves to share his views on issues, which have great impacts on his thought process (and also on India, South Asia and of course on the global community), with his readers through his website – Boundless Ocean of Politics. By doing so, he tries to keep himself afloat. You will find some of his articles in https://inserbia.info/today/ (https://inserbia.info/today/author/kou_das13_i/), as he has been trying to assess the global geopolitics since 2003. You can also mail him at kousdas@gmail.com View all posts by Koushik Das