Russia, Iran relegated to the periphery as awkward BRICS guests

Saudi Arabia, which received an invite as part of an expansion that doubled BRICS in size, continues to tiptoe around whether it really wants to be a part

Unlike Brazil’s Group of 20 summit, no one was late or missing when leaders of the world’s major emerging-market nations gathered for a family photo Sunday in Rio de Janeiro — at least not accidentally.

Brazil’s Luiz Inacio Lula da Silva, hosting the two-day meeting of BRICS countries, took center stage, flanked by South Africa’s Cyril Ramaphosa and India’s Narendra Modi on either side. Other representatives from the newly-expanded bloc fanned out from there, with the most controversial international attendees — the foreign ministers of Russia and Iran — on either flank.

It was a sharp contrast from a chaotic family photo against the same backdrop — Rio’s iconic Sugarloaf Mountain — in November, when the absence of then-US President Joe Biden, Italy’s Giorgia Meloni and Canadian Prime Minister Justin Trudeau epitomized the disarray that permeated Brazil’s G-20 meetings.

The photo of ten leaders, all of them men, was notable for who wasn’t in it: presidents Xi Jinping of China, Russia’s Vladimir Putin, Egypt’s Abdel-Fattah El-Sisi, Iran’s Masoud Pezeshkian, and anyone from Saudi Arabia. Still, the importance of China was reflected by Chinese Prime Minister Li Qiang placed next to Modi.

Xi, the leader of the bloc’s largest and most influential economy, decided against a trip to Rio after visiting Brazil last year and receiving Lula for a state visit in Beijing just a couple months ago. Putin, facing an international arrest warrant over Russia’s war in Ukraine, stayed home again, appearing briefly by video stream once the leaders’ meeting began. El-Sisi is busy mediating in the conflict-troubled Middle East.

And Saudi Arabia, which received an invite as part of an expansion that doubled BRICS in size, continues to tiptoe around whether it really wants to be a part.

It sent Foreign Minister Prince Faisal bin Farhan Al Saud. But it’s never fully accepted the invitation, and Saudi representatives have so far remained quiet in most of the group’s meetings in Brazil, according to three people familiar with the proceedings who requested anonymity to discuss the matter. It’s not clear if they are in or out, the people said.

Lula, as Brazil’s president is universally known, chatted and laughed with India’s Modi, who will assume the BRICS presidency from Brazil. He later opened the first session with a characteristic blast at the West for dramatically ramping up defense spending, and a veiled swipe at US President Donald Trump.

“International law has become a dead letter, along with the peaceful resolution of disputes,” Lula said, his wife Rosangela “Janja” da Silva looking on from just behind his shoulder. “NATO’s recent decision fuels the arms race.” Noting the ease with which nations agreed to allocate 5% of GDP to military spending compared to development aid, he added: “It’s always easier to invest in war than in peace.”

The BRICS meeting has only just started, and even with just six of the ten member leaders present, it’s already challenging the US-led order.