Russian President Vladimir Putin yesterday presided at the closing session of a summit of the BRICS bloc of developing economies, praising its role as a counterbalance to what he called the West’s “perverse methods.”
The three-day summit in the Russian city of Kazan covered the deepening of financial cooperation, including the development of alternatives to Western-dominated payment systems, efforts to settle regional conflicts and expansion of the BRICS group of nations.
The summit was attended by leaders or representatives of 36 countries, highlighting the failure of US-led efforts to isolate Russia over its ongoing invasion of Ukraine. The Kremlin touted the summit as “the largest foreign policy event ever held” by Russia.
Photo: AFP
Speaking at what was dubbed the “BRICS Plus” session, which included countries that are considering joining the bloc, Putin accused the West of trying to stem the growing power of the global south with “illegal unilateral sanctions, blatant protectionism, manipulation of currency and stock markets, and relentless foreign influence ostensibly promoting democracy, human rights and the climate change agenda.”
“Such perverse methods and approaches — to put it bluntly — lead to the emergence of new conflicts and the aggravation of old disagreements,” Putin said.
“One example of this is Ukraine, which is being used to create critical threats to Russia’s security, while ignoring our vital interests, our just concerns, and the infringement of the rights of Russian-speaking people,” he said.
Russia has specifically pushed for the creation of a new payment system that would offer an alternative to the global bank messaging network SWIFT and allow Moscow to dodge Western sanctions and trade with partners.
In a joint declaration on Wednesday, participants voiced concern about “the disruptive effect of unlawful unilateral coercive measures, including illegal sanctions” and reiterated their commitment to enhancing financial cooperation within BRICS, citing the benefits of “faster, low-cost, more efficient, transparent, safe and inclusive cross-border payment instruments built upon the principle of minimizing trade barriers and non-discriminatory access.”
Chinese President Xi Jinping (習近平) said the bloc was playing a larger role in ensuring global security, citing a jointly issued China-Brazil peace plan for Ukraine. Ukraine has rejected the proposal.
“We should promote the de-escalation of the situation as soon as possible and pave the way for a political settlement,” Xi said.
Putin and Xi had announced a “no-limits” partnership weeks before Russia sent troops into Ukraine in 2022. They already met twice earlier this year, in Beijing in May and at a Shanghai Cooperation Organization summit in Kazakhstan in July.
Putin, who held a series of bilateral meetings on the summit’s sidelines, was yesterday set to meet with UN Secretary-General Antonio Guterres, who is making his first visit to Russia in more than two years. Guterres’ trip to Kazan drew an angry reaction from Kyiv.
Addressing the BRICS Plus session, Guterres urged an immediate end to the fighting in Gaza, Lebanon, Ukraine and Sudan.
“We need peace in Ukraine, a just peace in line with the UN Charter, international law and General Assembly resolutions,” he said.
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