BRICS evolving as dedicated platform for Global South: Russian Ambassador

Listing promotion of just and equal multipolarity as a vital priority, Russia's Ambassador to India, Denis Alipov on Monday asserted that the addition of more partner-countries will multiply the value of diversified partnership and add to BRICS's global influence, which is now making a decisive contribution to the global food and energy security.

Briefing media in New Delhi on the outcomes of last week's 16th BRICS Summit in Kazan, which was also attended by Prime Minister Narendra Modi, the Russian diplomat stated that an evolving BRICS as a dedicated platform for the Global South is a reflection of current realities.

"As like-minded countries, we will keep closely coordinating on various international issues on the UN, G20 and WTO agenda to create better conditions for the Global South to get an equal access to technological, financial and natural resources and to remove development gaps and achieve SDGs," commented Alipov.

The summit in Kazan was held under the motto of 'Strengthening Multilateralism for Equitable Global Development and Security' and was the first in the expanded format with leaders from 35 states and six international organisations, including the UN Secretary General as well as Asian, African and Latin American countries, joining the plus and outreach formats.

Under its presidency, Russia hosted around 200 events - foreign and other sectoral ministerial meetings, the Parliamentary Forum (attended by Lok Sabha Speaker Om Birla), the NSAs dialogue - that saw participation of NSA AJit Doval - working groups, conferences and seminars, business fora, cultural and film festivals as also sport games, fashion forum and fire drills.

"We succeeded quite well despite all doubts regarding differences within the expanded membership. Because our biggest value is the sincere dedication to find amicable solutions and a common ground when it comes to difficult issues," maintained Alipov.

He emphasised that BRICS is not exclusive but inclusive, not anti-west but non-west and has transformed into an "indispensable framework" for emerging centres of power, attracting more and more counties as a response to the global turbulence and uncertainty.

"One of the major outcomes of the summit is that we have created the new category of partner-countries, which will be individually invited to join the forum in this capacity. They will be announced after they accept invitations. It was very important to satisfy the growing interest to BRICS. This step will definitely multiply the value of our diversified partnership and add to the forum's global influence, which is now making a decisive contribution to the global food and energy security," said Alipov.

The BRICS members decided in Kazan to work out an investment platform through strengthening the New Development Bank as the key institution for sustainable development of its shareholders along with considering the BRICS Cross-Border Payments Initiative to facilitate interaction between central banks and the use of local currencies to strengthen financial sovereignty and independence.

It was also decided to study the feasibility of an electronic platform to settle cross-border trade in securities - BRICS Clear - and a BRICS (Re)Insurance Company besides upgrading Contingent Currency Arrangement, which serves as crucial tool to safeguard from short-term current account deficits.

"The Summit in Kazan signaled that the new constructive agenda is shaping. Russia is committed to strengthen BRICS further with the focus on practical cooperation and international coordination," the Russian Ambassador remarked.

Last Wednesday, during the BRICS restricted format meeting that was also addressed by Prime Minister Modi, Russian President Vladimir Putin had said that more than 30 countries have expressed a desire to join the BRICS alliance, an intergovernmental organisation comprising Brazil, Russia, India, China and South Africa which had added four new members - Egypt, Ethiopia, Iran and the United Arab Emirates - in January, this year.

"It would be wrong to ignore the unprecedented interest of the countries of the Global South and East in strengthening contacts with BRICS. In one form or another, more than 30 states have already expressed such a desire. At the same time, it is necessary to maintain a balance and not allow a decrease in the effectiveness of BRICS," said Putin while making his opening statement.