Foreign Minister Hakan Fidan is representing Türkiye at the two-day 17th BRICS Leaders summit, which began in Brazil’s Rio de Janeiro on Sunday.
The summit comes amid rising geopolitical tensions, including the recent Israeli and U.S. strikes on Iran, which has been a BRICS member since 2024, along with the genocide in the Gaza Strip and the war in Ukraine.
The return of Donald Trump to the White House and his renewed tariff threats have also raised concerns for the group.
The two-day talks will be hosted by Brazilian President Luiz Inacio Lula da Silva, with trade and investment, financial cooperation, AI and technology, global health, and climate action on the agenda.
Türkiye’s top diplomat, who attended the BRICS session on the sidelines of a BRICS foreign ministers meeting in Russia last month, will attend two sessions in Brazil, on multilateralism, artificial intelligence, economy, environment and global health.
BRICS was originally formed in 2009 by Brazil, Russia, India and China, with South Africa joining the following year.
It has grown to 11 members, including Saudi Arabia, Egypt, Ethiopia, Iran, the United Arab Emirates, and Indonesia – the latest member to join the bloc.
An additional 10 countries, among them Vietnam, Nigeria and Malaysia, have joined as official "partner countries," a new category introduced at the 16th BRICS summit in Russia.
The bloc, which sees itself as a voice for the Global South, accounts for around 44% of global GDP and more than 56% of the world's population. It advocates for a multipolar global order and expansionism and seeks to counter Western influence on the global front.
Notably absent from the summit will be two founding leaders, Russian President Vladimir Putin and Chinese President Xi Jinping.
Putin, who faces an International Criminal Court (ICC) arrest warrant, will participate virtually, according to media reports. Meanwhile, the Russian delegation in Brazil will be represented by Foreign Minister Sergey Lavrov. Xi will skip the summit, his first time missing the meeting as Chinese president in 12 years. According to media reports, Beijing had reportedly informed the Brazilian government that Xi would be absent from the event due to a scheduling conflict. Chinese Prime Minister Li Qiang is expected to attend in his place. Iranian President Masoud Pezeshkian is also reportedly going to miss the summit.
Those attending include Indian Prime Minister Narendra Modi, South African President Cyril Ramaphosa and U.N. Secretary-General Antonio Guterres.
The group seeks better cooperation among Global South countries by creating alternative financial systems, reducing dollar dependency and greater representation in global institutions.
With the theme for this year's summit, "Strengthening Global South Cooperation for More Inclusive and Sustainable Governance," the BRICS nations are set to discuss a wide range of topics
Brazil is said to focus on six key topics, including global health cooperation, trade, investment and finance, and climate change. It is also emphasizing artificial intelligence, governance, multilateral peace and security architecture and institutional development.
At the summit, Fidan is expected to underscore the importance of preserving and enhancing the effectiveness of multilateralism in addressing global challenges.
Fidan is also anticipated to emphasize the role of the BRICS platform in this context and present Türkiye’s principled, constructive and humanitarian approach to crises in the Middle East, particularly in Gaza. He is likely to draw attention to the threats posed by Israel’s aggression to regional peace, security, and development.
The minister is expected to reaffirm Türkiye’s stance that global prosperity can only be achieved through cooperation, dialogue and stability, rather than through military conflicts or trade wars. He will likely stress the importance of a fair and predictable international trade system.
Fidan is also expected to highlight the need for shared responsibility in tackling issues such as climate change, environmental protection, sustainable development and global health. He will present Türkiye’s concrete contributions in these areas, including its legislative efforts and ongoing projects such as the zero waste initiative aimed at combating climate change.
Additionally, Fidan is set to outline Türkiye’s vision for building a sustainable artificial intelligence and advanced technology ecosystem. He is expected to call for a more inclusive and responsive multilateral system to reduce global poverty, address inequality and bridge development gaps among countries.
On the sidelines of the summit, Fidan is also scheduled to hold bilateral meetings.
