At BRICS Summit, China and India Vie for Influence

What the report says

China and India are using the BRICS summit to advance competing visions for the bloc, according to The New York Times. China views the group as a way to counter U.S. influence, while India is working to keep BRICS wide-ranging and avoid turning it into a camp that forces members to pick sides. The article frames the summit as part of a broader contest for leadership and influence among major emerging powers.

BRICS, which began as a forum for large developing economies, has grown into a platform with geopolitical significance beyond economics. That makes summit meetings important for signaling how member states want the group to evolve and what role it should play in global affairs. The Times’ reporting suggests the China-India tension is one of the central dynamics shaping those discussions.

The issue matters because BRICS is often seen as a possible counterweight to Western-led institutions, and disagreements over its purpose can affect how unified the bloc appears. In general terms, China has tended to support a more explicitly anti-Western posture, while India has often favored a more flexible arrangement that preserves room for multiple partnerships. The article places the summit in that context, highlighting the balance each country is trying to strike.