BRAZIL'S LEADER SAYS BRICS WILL SEEK ALTERNATIVE PAYMENT SYSTEMS

MOSCOW, Feb 27 (Bernama-Sputnik/RIA Novosti) -- Brazilian President Luiz Inacio Lula da Silva said BRICS, presided over by Brazil, plans to look for alternative platforms for payments between member countries, reported Sputnik/RIA Novosti.

The BRICS summit will be held in Rio de Janeiro on July 6-7. This year, Brazil is the president of BRICS.

The country's leader opened the meeting of BRICS Sherpas on Wednesday.

"The current escalation of protectionism in trade and investment boosts the importance of measures aimed at overcoming obstacles to our economic integration. Expanding payment options means reducing vulnerabilities and costs. The Brazilian (BRICS) presidency is committed to developing additional, ... accessible, transparent and secure payment platforms," ​​the UOL portal quoted the president as saying.

US President Donald Trump earlier said that the BRICS countries allegedly abandoned plans to create an alternative to the dollar in settlements after Washington's threat to impose 150 per cent tariffs and stop trading with them. According to him, the BRICS countries wanted to create a new currency, possibly using the Chinese yuan, but after the US threat, changed their minds.

Earlier reports said the BRICS countries discussed the possibility of expanding settlements in national currencies and creating a common currency within the bloc, but no final decisions were made on the issue.

BRICS is an interstate association created in 2006 by Russia, China, India and Brazil. South Africa joined in 2011. Since the beginning of 2024, a number of other countries have joined BRICS.

--BERNAMA-SPUTNIK/RIA NOVOSTI