India’s presidency of the G20 has put a premium on its role as “the voice of the Global South”, even as it serves as the bridge between the Global South and the Global North. The upcoming Delhi Summit’s success will depend on India’s ability to balance diverse interests while broadening the areas of convergence and narrowing those of disagreement within the grouping.

The decision to invite six countries — Argentina, Egypt, Ethiopia, Iran, Saudi Arabia, and the UAE — to join BRICS as full members has opened the grouping to a new geopolitical era. India can now play a seminal but challenging role in this evolved dynamic, given its growing cooperation with the West on the one hand and its active pursuit of the interests of the Global South on the other.

The BRICS Summit in Johannesburg has drawn international attention to the grouping’s past record of achievements and failures, its strained internal dynamics, and new challenges. As BRICS heads into its 18th year, its success and way forward will depend on the members’ ability to tackle the principal challenge of retaining its internal solidarity while balancing expansion and its impact and influence in the world.

The 15th BRICS summit is set to take place on August 22-24 in Johannesburg. Against a backdrop of escalating global tensions, the summit's agenda encompasses crucial topics including greater representation of the Global South, reform of MDBs, and geopolitical flashpoints like the Ukraine crisis. The summit's outcomes will extend beyond the grouping and redefine the landscape of international cooperation among emerging economies.

Two years on since the military coup in 2021 and the continued absence of security and stability has only worsened the political and economic situation in Myanmar has only worsened in the absence of security and stability. India's long-standing strategic and economic interests in Myanmar will not be achieved if it doesn't proactively step up now to prevent the from becoming a flawed polity or a dependent of China.

The 56th ASEAN Foreign Ministers Meeting in Jakarta reflected the grouping’s resilience amidst transformative geopolitical changes in the Indo-Pacific. Striving for unity and centrality, ASEAN tackled challenges posed by COVID-19, economic slowdown, climate change, and U.S.-China competition. However, internal differences on sensitive issues like Myanmar have tested its credibility.

ASEAN's efforts to restore democratic transition and political normalcy in Myanmar have come up against a wall of non-cooperation from the state's current military regime. The grouping's internal unity and credibility has also been challenged by two parallelly unfolding policy lines - one favoured by the grouping and the other pursued by Thailand and its supporters. India, which has vital national interests at stake in Myanmar, has supported ASEAN centrality and the 5PC on Myanmar, while also simultaneously demonstrating an understanding of the Thai unilateral policy.

The Shanghai Cooperation Organisation's growing importance is seen in the numerous new applicants waiting in line for membership. The 23rd SCO Summit hosted by India on July 4 saw progress in areas like digital transformation and economic cooperation. However, timidity in acting on foundational issues like anti-terrorism reflects the internal contradictions and tensions within member states - a continuing challenge for SCO.

India’s rise as a global player is linked to the kind of relationship it enjoys with African countries, especially as the latter is undergoing demographic, political, and socioeconomic transitions. A new report on the India-Africa partnership recommends a resilient ‘Africa policy’ that will collectively enhance diplomatic, defense, cultural, and developmental collaboration between the two countries.

India's proposal to invite the African Union as a full member of the G20 comes three months before the Leaders’ Summit. The AU’s entry will make the grouping more representative and inclusive, thereby enhancing its moral credibility. For its part, the AU’S economic potential and mineral wealth can have a positive impact on decisions of global importance.