Russian Foreign Minister Sergey Lavrov asserts that efforts to shift to national currencies in the Shanghai Cooperation Organization (SCO) cannot be stopped. The initiative to increase the use of national currencies in settlements between member states was discussed during a meeting in Panaji, India.
Lavrov suggests that participants could adopt practices from the Eurasian Development Bank, the Asian Bank for Reconstruction and Development, and the BRICS bloc’s New Development Bank to achieve the transition. He believes that this work is in progress and unstoppable.
Discussions on transitioning to national currencies in BRICS
Lavrov also recalled the proposal by Brazil’s President Luiz Inacio Lula da Silva to transition to payments in national currencies within the BRICS group of emerging economies. Creating an “aggregated currency” was also discussed at the SCO meeting, which Lavrov believes should not be ruled out.
Lavrov emphasized the importance of addressing practical issues to safeguard the collaboration of independent countries. He accused the West of misusing its position in the global economy and the reserve currency status of the U.S. dollar and the euro.
SCO members preparing for national currency settlements
Grigory Logvinov, SCO Deputy Secretary General, recently revealed in an interview that the organization, comprising China, Russia, India, Pakistan, and several Central Asian nations, plans to abandon the dollar in favor of national currency settlements. However, Lavrov noted that introducing a common currency is not yet under consideration. BRICS, the world’s largest bloc by GDP, also aims to promote the use of national currencies initially.