Russian President Vladimir Putin said that the creation of a single currency within the framework of the BRICS is not yet on the agenda. In an interview with an Indian TV channel, he stressed that the issue of forming a common currency instrument requires a "very calm and careful process" to avoid mistakes that other integration associations have already faced.
"At the moment, there is no task of creating a single currency," Putin stressed. He recalled the European experience, where the single currency was introduced with varying degrees of readiness of countries. "In Europe, this has led to problems in regulating social issues," the Russian leader noted, pointing out that BRICS needs to avoid such a scenario and move in stages.
Putin arrived in India at the invitation of Prime Minister Narendra Modi. On the eve of the meeting, he answered questions from local journalists, paying considerable attention to the topic of de-dollarization. This issue is being actively discussed in the countries of the association, but without haste: the priority remains the expansion of settlements in national currencies and the development of new payment infrastructures.
The BRICS initiatives are causing a sharp reaction in Washington. In January, US President Donald Trump publicly called on the countries of the union to abandon attempts to replace the dollar. He warned that the creation of a single currency or the support of an alternative instrument to the dollar "will result in duties of 100 percent."
Meanwhile, Russian Foreign Minister Sergei Lavrov recalled that it was the United States that, through its intervention, pushed BRICS to search for independent settlement mechanisms. "We didn't abandon the dollar, we were simply cut off from the dollar, abusing its position as the world's reserve currency," Lavrov said, stressing the need to develop our own payment solutions within the framework of the BRICS.
Experts note that the real strategic goal of the association is not to create an instant "super currency", but to form a multipolar financial architecture. Among the tools under consideration are clearing mechanisms, central bank digital currencies, and advanced settlements in national currencies. All this will reduce dependence on the dollar and strengthen the domestic market of the BRICS countries, which already exceeds a third of the global economy in terms of purchasing power parity.
