Amidst escalating trade tensions and the imposition of tariffs by the United States under President Trump, India's External Affairs Minister S. Jaishankar addressed a virtual summit of BRICS nations, emphasizing the importance of fair economic practices. The summit, convened by Brazilian President Lula da Silva on September 8, 2025, aimed to address trade disruptions triggered by Washington's trade and tariff policies and create a united approach in dealing with the situation.
Jaishankar's participation in the BRICS summit underscores India's commitment to protecting its economic interests and reinforcing its support for a balanced, multilateral global order. India has been vocal about its concerns regarding the "unfair and unreasonable" tariffs imposed by the U.S., including a 25% tariff on Indian imports linked to the country's purchase of Russian oil. Similarly, Brazil has been hit with a 50% tariff on key exports like coffee.
During the BRICS meeting, Jaishankar was expected to highlight India's stance on these tariffs and emphasize the importance of energy security and strategic autonomy. Brazilian officials have indicated that the summit would serve as a platform to rally emerging economies around the principles of multilateralism. The BRICS nations, including China, Russia, and South Africa, are likely to coordinate their response to the U.S. trade actions.
India has consistently advocated for an open, fair, and inclusive multilateral trading system centered around the World Trade Organization (WTO). At the Shanghai Cooperation Organisation (SCO) Trade Ministers' Meeting in Vladivostok, India emphasized the need for export diversification, reducing dependency, and building resilient supply chains. India also cautioned against the misuse of export-related measures to create artificial scarcity, distort markets, or disrupt supply chains.
Moreover, India has stressed the importance of diversifying and de-risking supply and production chains through geographical spread, interoperable logistics, predictable market access, and enhanced connectivity, while upholding principles of national sovereignty and territorial integrity. India has also emphasized that persistent trade imbalances must be addressed through better market access, cooperation on standards, and streamlined trade facilitation.
In the digital economy, India has proposed SCO workstreams focused on fair, transparent, and predictable regulatory frameworks, voluntary cooperation on best practices, and capacity-building for secure, innovation-led digitalization. India has showcased its achievements in Digital Public Infrastructure (DPI), including UPI for real-time payments, India Stack for identity and consent management, and ONDC for unbundled digital commerce.
The BRICS summit and India's participation in it occur amidst a backdrop of increasing trade tensions and geopolitical shifts. The U.S. administration has expressed concerns about the BRICS' agenda, with President Trump cautioning against any "de-dollarisation" efforts. Some U.S. officials have even suggested that India should withdraw from BRICS. However, India has consistently maintained that it does not support de-dollarization and views BRICS as a platform for promoting multilateralism and addressing shared challenges.
Despite the trade disputes, India has affirmed that the comprehensive global strategic partnership between the United States and India is very important. Both countries share common interests, democratic values, and strong people-to-people ties. India remains focused on the substantive agenda that the two countries have committed to and hopes that the relationship will continue to move forward based on mutual respect and shared interests.
