The 18th BRICS Summit, hosted by India in New Delhi, has significantly strengthened India's standing as an independent global power, with the New Delhi Declaration unequivocally condemning the Pahalgam terror attack of 22 April 2025 and adopting firm language against cross-border terrorism, terror financing, and safe havens. According to an analysis by Athens-based policy publication Directus, the declaration reinforces an argument India has made before the international community for decades.

What the New Delhi Declaration Says

The declaration, adopted by BRICS member nations, explicitly states that terrorism cannot be legitimised through political explanations, and that countries cannot selectively distinguish between terrorist groups based on strategic convenience. The Pahalgam attack — carried out by a Pakistan-based terrorist group — killed 26 civilians and is condemned in the document in what Directus described as 'the strongest terms.'

Notably, Pakistan has not been named explicitly in the declaration. According to the Directus report, 'that fact should neither be concealed nor exaggerated,' adding that 'the political significance of the declaration lies precisely in the terminology accepted by a diverse group of important nations.'

Why the Language on Terrorism Matters

The Directus analysis underscores that the declaration's condemnation of the Pahalgam attack is compounded by accompanying language on cross-border terrorism, financing, and safe havens — and that this combination carries particular weight. 'India has consistently maintained that terrorism in Jammu and Kashmir cannot be viewed merely through the prism of a political dispute,' the report noted.

The publication further argued that fighting terrorism requires dismantling entire ecosystems — weapons supply chains, recruitment networks, training facilities and financing routes — rather than targeting individual perpetrators alone. 'That principle has now received significant endorsement within BRICS,' it stated.

The report raised an increasingly uncomfortable question for Pakistan: how long can the international narrative on cross-border terrorism remain detached from the infrastructure and ideological networks that India has repeatedly accused of operating from Pakistani territory?

India's Multidirectional Foreign Policy on Display

The Directus analysis also highlighted what it described as the strength of Prime Minister Narendra Modi's multidirectional foreign policy approach. India, it noted, simultaneously participates in the Quad while remaining a principal member of BRICS; maintains its historic relationship with Russia while building an expanding partnership with the United States; has deepened engagement with Gulf countries while sustaining ties with Israel; and continues engaging China wherever national interests demand it, despite significant bilateral differences.

'India has managed to place its core security concerns before a grouping containing countries with dramatically different geopolitical interests and secure a meaningful consensus,' Directus stated.

Strategic Autonomy Vindicated

According to the report, India's much-debated doctrine of strategic autonomy — sometimes criticised as difficult to sustain — demonstrated its utility at the BRICS Summit. By securing consensus language on terrorism from a bloc that includes nations with sharply divergent geopolitical alignments, India has, the report argued, reinforced its credibility 'as an independent global power rather than an appendage of any geopolitical bloc.'

As BRICS continues to expand its membership and influence, the New Delhi Declaration's counterterrorism language could serve as a template for India's multilateral diplomacy — and as a measure of the diplomatic ground New Delhi still needs to gain to internationalise its security concerns more formally.