India's BRICS Summit Achieves Rare Accord: Iran, UAE Jointly Call for Mideast Restraint

India’s hosting of the New Delhi BRICS summit produced a notable institutional outcome on Saturday: Iran and the United Arab Emirates jointly endorsed a multilateral declaration calling for restraint in the Middle East conflict, a result that summit organizers had identified in advance as the central test of the bloc’s cohesion.

The declaration, released by the BRICS grouping, expressed deep concern over escalating tensions in the Middle East and West Asia. It urged all parties to exercise maximum restraint and avoid actions that could worsen the situation. The statement also called for protection of civilians, respect for state sovereignty and territorial integrity, and safeguarding of global trade routes, supply chains, energy flows and maritime security.

The significance of the joint endorsement lay partly in what it represented institutionally. Foreign policy experts had identified finding mutually acceptable language on the Middle East crisis as the central test for the BRICS bloc, which expanded in recent years to include Egypt, Ethiopia, Indonesia, Iran and the UAE alongside its original members of Brazil, Russia, India, China and South Africa.

The bloc was established in 2009 to challenge a world order dominated by the United States and Western allies, positioning itself as a voice for emerging economies seeking greater influence over global institutions and rules. At New Delhi, BRICS members focused on demanding reform of bodies such as the World Bank, International Monetary Fund and World Trade Organization, which some member states view as Western-dominated.

Indian Prime Minister Narendra Modi, hosting the summit, declared that BRICS had come of age and must now translate its unity and consensus into concrete global results. Chinese President Xi Jinping said BRICS countries should stand on the right side of history by steering the international order toward greater equity and justice. Xi added that China was prepared to play its due role in achieving Middle East peace and stability, calling for parties to remain committed to political settlement and work toward a permanent and comprehensive ceasefire.

The diplomatic engagement between Iran and the UAE took tangible form when Iranian President Masoud Pezeshkian met with Abu Dhabi Crown Prince Sheikh Khaled bin Mohamed bin Zayed Al Nahyan on the summit’s first day. The Abu Dhabi media office said the two leaders discussed regional and international issues, de-escalation, stability and efforts to advance regional peace and development, though it provided no details on specific resolutions.

That meeting represented the highest-level encounter between the two countries since the conflict began. Iran has launched repeated attacks on the UAE during the war, including a strike in late August on the Al Minhad Air Base housing U.S. forces and helicopters. This backdrop made the joint statement and direct engagement particularly consequential.

Meanwhile, summit organizers and diplomats had made bridging the Iran-UAE divide a stated priority, even as the United States and Iran continued their own tit-for-tat strikes in what had become a six-month conflict. Sunjay Sudhir, a former Indian ambassador to the UAE, told Reuters that while the key to ending the war ultimately rested with the U.S. and Israel, India’s role in keeping difficult conversations alive held value. By demonstrating that regional countries could sit together, engage diplomatically and identify converging interests, India had maintained a channel for dialogue.

Observers cautioned that the joint BRICS declaration was unlikely to shift the current geopolitical landscape directly. The Iranian embassy in India released a photograph of the Pezeshkian-Sheikh Khaled meeting but offered no commentary on the substance of their discussions.

India’s role in orchestrating the diplomatic moment reflected its broader position as a nation with strong ties to the United States, Russia, Israel, Iran and Gulf Arab states. Modi was engaged in a careful balancing act, pushing BRICS members to focus on trade cooperation, reduce barriers and expand business opportunities while managing the bloc’s competing interests and regional tensions. Whether the New Delhi declaration translates into any durable shift in Iran-UAE relations, or remains a statement of intent without follow-through, will depend on decisions made well beyond the summit hall.