Kazan, Russia — Russian President Vladimir Putin chaired the closing session of the summit of the BRICS bloc of developing economies on Thursday, praising its role as a counterweight to what he called the West’s “perverse methods.” The three-day summit in the city of Kazan focused on deepening 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 alliance which initially included Brazil, Russia, India, China and South Africa, upon its creation in 2009, expanded to encompass IranEgypt, Ethiopia, United Arab Emirates and Saudi Arabia. Turkey, Azerbaijan and Malaysia have formally applied to become members, and several other countries have expressed interest in joining.
The summit brought together leaders or representatives from 36 countries, highlighting the failure of U.S.-led efforts to isolate Russia because of its war in Ukraine. The Kremlin billed the summit as Russia’s “biggest foreign policy event ever.”
Speaking at what was dubbed the “BRICS Plus” session, attended by countries considering joining the bloc, Putin accused the West of trying to stem the growing power of the Global South with “sanctions illegal unilateral actions, blatant protectionism, currency and stock market manipulation and unrelenting 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. “An example of this is Ukraine, which is being used to create critical threats to Russia’s security, disregarding our vital interests, fair concerns and violations of the rights of the Russian-speaking people.”
Putin ordered a full-scale invasion of neighboring Ukraine more than two years ago, and Russian forces now occupy about 20% of the country. Tens of thousands of people were killed in this war, which Putin claimed at different stages was either a response to NATO’s eastward expansion or a defense of pro-Russian populations in the is from Ukraine.
Support from the United States and its NATO allies has helped Ukraine prevent a complete Russian takeover, but many in the region fear November’s U.S. presidential election could bring a second term to former President Donald Trump, seen as more sympathetic to Putin and less likely to maintain his mandate. current levels of support in kyiv.
Russia has specifically pushed for the creation of a new payment system that would offer an alternative to the global banking messaging network SWIFT, which would allow Moscow to avoid Western sanctions and trade with its partners – some of which are also heavily sanctioned by the United States and its allies – more easily.
In a joint statement on Wednesday, the participants expressed concern over “the disruptive effect of illegal unilateral coercive measures, including illegal sanctions”, and reiterated their commitment to strengthening financial cooperation within BRICS. They highlighted the benefits of “faster, cheaper, more efficient, transparent, secure and inclusive cross-border payment instruments, based on the principle of minimizing trade barriers and non-discriminatory access”.
MAXIM SHIPENKOV/Pool via REUTERS
Chinese President Xi Jinping has highlighted the bloc’s role in ensuring global security. Xi noted that China and Brazil have presented a peace plan for Ukraine and sought to rally broader international support for the plan. Ukraine rejected the proposal.
“We should promote de-escalation of the situation as soon as possible and pave the way for a political settlement,” Xi said on Thursday.
Putin and Xi announced a “limitless” partnership weeks before Russia sends troops to Ukraine in 2022. Moscow then declared its intention to forge a new “democratic world order” with China. Putin and Xi met again twice earlier this year, in Beijing in May and at a Shanghai Cooperation Organization summit in Kazakhstan in July.
Russia’s cooperation with India is also flourishing, as New Delhi views Moscow as a proven partner since the Cold War, despite Russia’s close ties with India’s rival China. While Western allies want New Delhi to be more active in persuading Moscow to end the fighting in Ukraine, Indian Prime Minister Narendra Modi has avoided condemning Russia while emphasizing a peaceful settlement.
Putin, who held a series of bilateral meetings on the sidelines of the summit, was due to meet on Thursday with UN Secretary-General Antonio Guterres, who is making his first visit to Russia in more than two years. Guterres’ trip to Kazan sparked an angry response in kyiv.
Addressing the BRICS Plus session, Guterres called for an immediate end to fighting in Gaza, Lebanon, Ukraine and Sudan. “We need peace in Ukraine, a just peace, consistent with the United Nations Charter, international law and General Assembly resolutions,” he said.
Kremlin-controlled Russian media portrayed the summit as a massive political coup that left the West fearing a loss of global influence. State television broadcasts and news bulletins have emphasized that BRICS countries represent about half of the world’s population, constituting the “global majority” and challenging Western “hegemony.”
TV hosts widely cited Western media reports saying the summit had highlighted the failure of Moscow’s isolation. “The West, the United States, Washington, Brussels, London have ended up isolating themselves,” declared Eugene Popov, host of a popular political debate on the public channel Rossiya 1.