Why in the News?
The 2025 BRICS Summit highlighted a significant shift in the global order, with the United States under Donald Trump bypassing multilateral institutions like the UN, promoting bilateralism, and weakening the Global South’s collective voice.
What does the decline of multilateralism mean for India?
- Reduced Collective Bargaining Power: With institutions like the United Nations (UN) being marginalised, India can no longer rely on multilateral forums to advocate for Global South interests. Eg: The BRICS 2025 Declaration failed to address the erosion of multilateralism or emphasize South-South cooperation.
- Shift Towards Bilateralism and Strategic Autonomy: India must engage through commerce-driven bilateral deals and assert strategic autonomy between global powers. Eg: India’s loss in the UNESCO Vice-Chair election to Pakistan underlines the need for stronger bilateral influence and independent foreign policy.
- Focus on Self-Reliance and Regional Partnerships: India should now concentrate on its own economic growth and build strong ties with nearby countries to reduce dependence on global powers. Eg: India linking trade deals with the U.S. to agreements with ASEAN nations shows a shift toward regional cooperation.
Why is South-South cooperation crucial for India now?
- Enhances Development Partnerships: South-South cooperation allows India to share low-cost technologies, development models, and capacity-building expertise with other developing countries. Eg: Through the Indian Technical and Economic Cooperation (ITEC) programme, India trains professionals from over 160 countries in fields like IT, agriculture, and governance.
- Secures Access to Critical Resources: Collaboration with Global South nations helps India access vital natural resources and raw materials essential for its manufacturing and energy needs. Eg: India’s investment in lithium and cobalt mines in Africa supports its EV and battery manufacturing push under the Make in India initiative.
- Builds Resilience Against Western Dependency: Strengthening ties within the Global South reduces overreliance on Western economies and institutions, especially in times of geopolitical uncertainty or trade sanctions. Eg: The India-Brazil-South Africa (IBSA) Fund supports poverty alleviation and post-conflict reconstruction, demonstrating a collective southern-led approach.
How can India use its tech and industrial strengths globally?
- Exporting Digital Public Infrastructure (DPI): India can leverage its success in building scalable digital platforms to assist developing countries in digital governance and financial inclusion. Eg: India’s Modular Open-Source Identity Platform (MOSIP), modeled on Aadhaar, has been adopted by Philippines, Morocco, and Sri Lanka to develop their own digital ID systems.
- Promoting Green Industrial Innovation: India’s industrial base is increasingly oriented towards clean energy and sustainable manufacturing, which can be exported as part of global decarbonisation efforts. Eg: Indian companies like ReNew Power and Tata Power Solar are investing in solar and wind energy projects in Africa and Southeast Asia.
- Becoming a Global Hub for Frugal Innovation: India’s expertise in low-cost, high-impact technology (also known as frugal innovation) can benefit developing nations with limited resources. Eg: The Jaipur Foot, a low-cost prosthetic limb developed in India, is being distributed in countries like Rwanda and Honduras through international collaborations.
How can the 2026 BRICS Summit boost India’s leadership?
- Revitalising Global South Unity: India can use the Summit to reposition BRICS as a platform for South-South cooperation, shifting focus from collective bargaining in forums like G-77 to mutual prosperity and strategic autonomy among emerging economies.
- Showcasing Economic and Technological Strength: By highlighting its achievements in infrastructure, green energy, digital economy, and innovation (e.g. GenAI patents), India can project itself as a model for inclusive and sustainable growth, inspiring other developing nations.
- Shaping a Post-Multilateral Global Order: With declining trust in traditional multilateral institutions, India can steer BRICS toward new frameworks of trade, finance, and diplomacy, boosting its global influence and cementing leadership in a multipolar world.
What strategic shifts should guide India’s foreign policy? (Way forward)
- Reinforcing Strategic Autonomy: India must maintain a neutral stance amidst intensifying U.S.-China rivalry by prioritising core national interests over bloc politics. This includes independent voting in global forums and diversifying strategic partnerships beyond traditional allies.
- Pivot to the Global South: India should lead a rejuvenated South-South cooperation framework by promoting trade, technology, and development cooperation with developing countries, positioning itself as a voice and leader of emerging economies.
- Geo-Economic Realignment: Foreign policy should focus on economic diplomacy securing supply chains, signing bilateral trade pacts, and enhancing infrastructure and digital connectivity with the Indo-Pacific and ASEAN to counterbalance Western economic dependence.
Mains PYQ:
[UPSC 2024] The West is fostering India as an alternative to reduce dependence on China’s supply chain and as a strategic ally to counter China’s political and economic dominance.’ Explain this statement with examples.
Linkage: The article talks about the U.S. is “engaging countries with strategic commerce-related bilateral deals that fragment the global order” and that its national interest now includes “containment of China’s influence”. This question directly reflects the shift in U.S. (part of “The West”) foreign policy as described in the article.
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