Modi at BRICS: Warns Against Weaponising Technology and Critical Minerals; Pushes Resilience and Cooperation

At the BRICS summit in New Delhi, Prime Minister Narendra Modi delivered an address focused on the effects of growing geopolitical tensions and the need for collective action within BRICS. He framed India's presidency around four operational pillars — resilience, innovation, cooperation, and sustainability — and presented concrete measures the group has agreed to under those headings.

Modi told summit participants that rising global tensions are already hurting ordinary people. He said pandemics, climate disasters and supply-chain disruptions show how crises now spread beyond regional boundaries. Within that context he raised a direct warning: the weaponisation of technology and critical minerals threatens to impede shared progress and prosperity.

Leaders present in the session included Chinese President Xi Jinping, Russian President Vladimir Putin, Iranian President Masoud Pezeshkian, Malaysian Prime Minister Anwar Ibrahim and Indonesian President Prabowo Subianto.

Modi outlined several outcomes and frameworks that were advanced during India's BRICS presidency:

• BRICS Integrated Early Warning System for infectious diseases. A consensus has been reached to create a group-level system aimed at prevention and response to infectious disease threats.

• Guidelines for an early warning data-integration mechanism. These guidelines are meant to improve how member countries share and use data related to disease threats.

• BRICS logistics and supply-chain cooperation framework. This is intended to make supply chains among member countries more reliable and resilient to disruptions.

• BRICS incubator network. The network will connect startups and incubators across BRICS countries to foster innovation and collaboration.

Modi framed these initiatives as practical tools to increase resilience, help the Global South, and create cooperative opportunities across member states.

Why the warning on technology and minerals matters

What this means for BRICS and the Global South

Modi emphasized BRICS' potential to address the needs of the Global South and said confidence in the grouping has increased. The operational focus on early warnings, supply-chain cooperation, and startup networks points to a strategy that seeks practical, implementable cooperation rather than symbolic declarations. The combination of health data integration and logistics frameworks targets immediate vulnerabilities, while the incubator network aims to build longer-term economic ties.