Xi Jinping's BRICS 2026 Speech: Five Proposals for the Global South

At the 18th BRICS Leaders' Summit in New Delhi, Chinese President Xi Jinping used the second plenary session to argue that the bloc's expansion from a handful of emerging economies into a "Greater BRICS" must be matched by concrete institutional output rather than rhetoric. Delivered on September 13, 2026 and hosted by Indian Prime Minister Narendra Modi, the speech framed the Global South's collective rise as the defining force in a fragmenting world order — and China as its most organized sponsor. For anyone tracking trade corridors, AI governance, or the politics of multilateral reform, the address is a compact map of Beijing's priorities for the next several years.

Key Points

• A rules-based framing. Xi opened with a vivid metaphor: a world without rules is like an intersection without traffic lights, where disorder is inevitable. He called for international law to apply equally to all states, rejecting double standards and the logic that "might makes right" — a line aimed at both Western sanctions regimes and unilateral security actions.
• Multilateralism and UN reform. The speech urged Global South countries to defend the UN's authority, support reform of multilateral institutions, and give developing economies a stronger voice. Specific asks included keeping World Trade Organization reform on track, preserving most-favored-nation treatment, and expanding the role of the New Development Bank.
• Five new cooperation initiatives. The centerpiece was a package of proposals: an AI open-source initiative, a trade and investment facilitation initiative, a digital industry cooperation initiative, a smart manufacturing initiative, and a science-and-talent initiative. Each pairs a Chinese-built platform with training or standard-setting components.
• AI as a shared public good. Beijing pledged to build a BRICS AI open-source zone, support large language model development and application, and run dedicated AI training programs. The framing positions open-source AI as a development tool for countries that cannot afford proprietary ecosystems.
• Trade and special economic zones. China proposed a BRICS partnership among special economic zones, a smart portal for policy alignment, and a services trade forum to be hosted in China next year. The goal is to knit member economies into a more integrated market.
• Digital and industrial upgrading. A BRICS digital industry cloud platform would host skills training, technical exchange, and business matchmaking, while a smart manufacturing push would help members build intelligent factories and shared standards.
• Talent pipelines. A BRICS engineers' alliance would co-train engineers and mutually recognize competency standards, alongside a youth science and innovation exchange program. This is a long-horizon play to build technical capacity aligned with Chinese platforms.
• Development finance and openness. Xi cited more than 2,000 cooperation projects and over 200,000 trained professionals under the Global Development Initiative since 2021, plus zero-tariff treatment for 53 African countries with diplomatic ties. He tied these to China's 15th Five-Year Plan, describing it as both a domestic blueprint and a cooperation list for the world.

In-Depth Analysis

The speech is best read as an institutionalization strategy. BRICS has spent years expanding its membership; the harder problem is giving that enlarged bloc a working agenda. By attaching concrete platforms — an AI repository, a digital cloud, an engineers' alliance — to the grouping, Beijing converts diplomatic goodwill into infrastructure that members come to depend on. That creates stickiness that communiqués alone cannot.

Notice where the proposals land. AI, digital industry, and smart manufacturing are precisely the sectors where China holds cost advantages and exportable standards. Offering open-source models and factory blueprints to Global South partners is simultaneously a development pitch and a market-opening move, since adoption tends to pull participants toward Chinese technical standards and vendors. The trade and special-zone initiative does similar work on the commercial side, using policy alignment to lower friction for Chinese firms already active across Africa, Southeast Asia, and Latin America.

The governance language carries a second audience. Criticisms of double standards and unilateralism are calibrated for a post-sanctions environment in which many emerging economies worry about being cut off from payment systems, chips, or markets. Xi's answer is to make the UN and WTO the reference points, and to push for greater developing-country representation in financial architecture — a slow-burn campaign that matters more than any single summit.

Skeptics will note the gap between announcement and execution. BRICS members have divergent interests, and India in particular is cautious about arrangements that could deepen dependence on Chinese technology. Funding for new platforms is rarely spelled out, and previous initiatives have sometimes stalled after the cameras leave. Still, the direction is clear: China is positioning itself as the Global South's systems integrator, and the 2026 summit marks a shift from declaring solidarity to building the plumbing that sustains it. Expect the AI and digital proposals to move fastest, and the financial-governance agenda to advance slowest.

FAQ

What are the five initiatives Xi proposed at the 2026 BRICS summit? They cover AI open-source cooperation, trade and investment facilitation, digital industry collaboration, smart manufacturing, and science and engineering talent development. Each combines a China-backed platform with training, standards, or policy-alignment components.

Why does the speech emphasize the Global South so heavily? Beijing frames the collective rise of developing economies as the main engine of a multipolar order, and presents itself as the organizer that can turn that demographic and economic weight into bargaining power. It is both a diplomatic identity and a bid for leadership.

How does this connect to China's own economic plans? Xi explicitly linked the proposals to the 15th Five-Year Plan, describing it as a domestic roadmap that doubles as an international cooperation list. That framing signals that outward-facing initiatives will be budgeted and staffed through China's regular planning cycle.

Source: https://www.thepaper.cn/newsDetail_forward_34061046