BRICS Leaders Call for Restraint, Gaza Ceasefire and Protection of Nuclear Facilities
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NEW DELHI (Terror Monitor) — BRICS leaders have expressed deep concern over rising tensions in the Middle East, calling on all parties to exercise maximum restraint and avoid actions that could further escalate the conflict.
In a joint statement issued Saturday during the BRICS summit in India’s capital, New Delhi, the 11-member grouping, which includes China, Russia, Iran and India, said member states maintained their respective national positions while expressing concern over the growing tensions in the region.
The leaders called for implementation of the Gaza ceasefire, full membership for Palestine at the United Nations and renewed efforts toward a two-state solution.
The joint declaration is significant because BRICS foreign ministers failed to reach agreement on a joint statement at their meeting in New Delhi in May. Differences had emerged among Iran, Saudi Arabia and the United Arab Emirates over the war that began on February 28 with U.S. and Israeli attacks on Iran.
However, following intense diplomatic efforts by India, BRICS leaders managed to agree on a common position at the summit.
The declaration also expressed serious concern over deliberate attacks on civilian infrastructure and nuclear facilities.
BRICS leaders said targeting peaceful nuclear facilities operating under the full safeguards of the International Atomic Energy Agency (IAEA) violates international law and relevant IAEA resolutions.
The statement stressed that nuclear safety, security and safeguards must be maintained at all times, including during armed conflicts, to prevent harm to people and the environment.
Chinese President Xi Jinping, speaking at the opening of the two-day summit, said the current war in the Middle East was “not beneficial to the common interests of the international community.”
Indian Prime Minister Narendra Modi, Russian President Vladimir Putin and Iranian President Masoud Pezeshkian are among the leaders attending the summit.
The joint declaration also referred to growing divisions and mutual distrust in the current international environment, calling for collective international efforts to strengthen global peace and security.
BRICS was established in 2009 as a forum for major emerging economies, with the aim of increasing their influence in global institutions traditionally dominated by Western powers.
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