Russian Foreign Minister Sergei Lavrov stated on Monday that members of the BRICS and the Shanghai Cooperation Organization (SCO) are rapidly transitioning to using national currencies instead of dollars in payments.
Lavrov made the remarks at the 9th edition of the International Forum “Primakov Readings” with the theme “Post-globalization Horizons,” which is taking place in Moscow on 27-28 November 2023.
Lavrov Discusses Alternative Payment System
“We are proactively discussing this topic both within the framework of the BRICS and within the framework of the Shanghai Cooperation Organization. Alternative payment platforms are being rolled out proactively; the transition to national currencies is going very quickly,” Lavrov remarked.
Lavrov addressed how India and China recognised the need to reduce their reliance on the current economic model dominated by the US dollar.. “Both India and the People’s Republic of China are taking care of their interests. They see, as I understand, that a mere withdrawal from this system, the start of building up new structures will be bad for their economy.”
“A gradual departure from the dependence on the dollar, payment systems, chains of supplies built up by the West has surfaced,” Lavrov added.
Lavrov noted that while the SCO is holding consultations on common payment platforms, there has been no breakthrough in this regard. He added that the recommendations made by the heads of the BRICS finance ministries and central banks on alternative payment platforms are expected to be considered “with an eye to making some decisions” during Russia’s BRICS presidency in 2024.
US Weaponising Dollar for Trade Wars: Lavrov
Lavrov asserted that the US is weaponsing the dollar to start trade wars around the world, while international economic cooperation is also being weaponised. “Unleashing trade and economic wars” is just one of the many “geopolitical engineering” tactics that the US and its EU allies are using, he added.
“The activities of the World Trade Organization, primarily for settling disputes, have been blocked by Western countries. Such fundamental legal foundations of world economic relations as free competition and the immunity of property have been destroyed,” Lavrov asserted. Furthermore, he noted that the US dollar has long been used as a weapon and that Western countries’ “destructive actions” had the opposite effect of what was intended. In this regard, he contended that US-led sanctions on Moscow, aimed at isolating and crippling the Russian economy, have actually boosted the “strengthening of multipolarity in international affairs.”
Lavrov indicated that many other countries, including Russia, are now “consistently” reducing their reliance on Western currencies by shifting to alternative methods of foreign trade settlement.
Reports suggest that the international shift toward using national currencies in trade instead of the US dollar received momentum last year, when Russia was cut off from the Western financial system and its foreign reserves were frozen as a result of Ukraine-related sanctions.
The Russian FM claimed that the world is becoming increasingly aware that “no one is immune” to the “aggressive actions of Washington and Brussels.” Lavrov noted that the current economic model is “unfair” and “unbalanced” and has become outdated.
Russia’s Lavrov Calls for Withdrawal from US Dollar, Proposes Alternative Payments Platform Within BRICS, SCO
Lavrov asserted that the US dollar has long been used as a weapon and that Western countries’ “destructive actions” had the opposite effect of what was intended.
November 28, 2023
IMAGE SOURCE: Russian Foreign Ministry OfficeRussian Foreign Minister Sergey Lavrov.