Methodology
Cite the chair. Do not invent the ledger.
Every policy claim on this site should be traceable to a named declaration, an official chair page, an institution, or a dated wire report. Analysis is ours. Underlying facts belong to their sources.
Primary sources we prefer
- Official BRICS chair sites and published summit declarations (Johannesburg 2023, Kazan 2024, Rio de Janeiro 2025, and the 2026 Indian chair materials).
- New Development Bank communications for institutional facts about the bank — not for unofficial league tables.
- Member foreign-ministry readouts when they confirm attendance, invitations, or national caveats.
Figures
If we cannot point to a public primary or a named secondary that itself cites a primary, we do not publish a number. That includes GDP weights, intra-BRICS trade totals, local-currency settlement shares, NDB disbursement totals, and any “de-dollarization” percentage.
Security language
BRICS is not a collective-defense treaty. Articles on this desk describe working-group cooperation and political statements. For theaters, fatalities, and status fields, follow the inbound hub: armedconflicts.org/methodology.html.
Corrections
If a chair updates a membership or partner list, we revise the relevant article and the updated date in machine files. We do not silently rewrite a summit as if a later event had already happened.