BRICS Summit: UN Chief Antonio Guterres To Stress UNSC Reforms In Delhi

United Nations Secretary-General Antonio Guterres will travel to New Delhi on Thursday for the 18th BRICS Summit, where he is expected to press for multipolarity and reforms to multilateral institutions, including the Security Council, so they reflect contemporary realities. The summit will be held in New Delhi on September 12-13.

He has been invited to address the Open Session on September 13 on the theme, "Resilience, Innovation, Cooperation and Sustainability: Shaping the Future for Inclusive Global Growth". UN spokesperson Stephane Dujarric told reporters at the daily press briefing on Wednesday that Guterres will note that today's economic, demographic and geopolitical realities are not those of 1945, and that the countries represented at the summit reflect that changing reality.

UN Reform Push

Dujarric also said Guterres is expected to "underscore that multipolarity can help bring balance to global systems and institutions". He added that this would require reforms to multilateral bodies, including the Bretton Woods system and the Security Council, to reflect today's realities.

The call for Security Council reform has long been backed by India and several other countries. They argue that the 15-member body does not sufficiently reflect the geopolitical and economic realities of the 21st century.

India has been seeking a permanent seat on the Council as part of its broader campaign for comprehensive reform of the UN's top decision-making body.

India Hosts BRICS

India is the BRICS chair for 2026.

It is a founding member of the grouping and has previously held the chairship in 2012, 2016 and 2021. The country took over its fourth BRICS chairship on January 1, the same day the grouping marked 20 years since its creation.

The 18th BRICS Summit will gather leaders of BRICS member and partner countries, along with outreach invitees. The meeting is expected to examine several pressing global issues, including the economic fallout from the West Asia crisis.

India's BRICS chairship theme is "Building for Resilience, Innovation, Cooperation and Sustainability". The Open Session Guterres will address carries the related theme, "Resilience, Innovation, Cooperation and Sustainability: Shaping the Future for Inclusive Global Growth".

Bilateral Meetings Planned

Guterres is expected to meet Prime Minister Narendra Modi and hold bilateral discussions with other officials attending the summit, Dujarric said. His second five-year term as UN chief ends in December 2026.

He last visited India in February for the India-AI Impact Summit 2026 in New Delhi. That gathering was the first global AI summit hosted in the Global South and centred on the principles of "People, Planet and Progress".