Overview

• Negotiators have drafted a declaration denouncing U.S. import levies set to begin July 9 while deliberately avoiding any direct reference to President Trump
• China’s Xi Jinping is skipping the Rio gathering for the first time since 2012 and Russia’s Vladimir Putin is participating only via video link
• President Luiz Inacio Lula da Silva used a BRICS banking forum to advocate for an alternative to the U.S. dollar in intra-bloc trade
• Member states remain split over issuing a robust statement on the Iran–Israel conflict, highlighting deep geopolitical rifts
• The expansion to eleven members now represents nearly half the world’s population and 40 percent of global GDP, intensifying challenges to unanimous decision-making