India does not support attempts to isolate Russia, says Russian envoy

New Delhi [India], July 5 (ANI): Russian Ambassador to India Denis Alipov in an exclusive interview with Sputnik, has said that New Delhi does not support attempts to isolate Russia as he referred to "clear consensus" at the BRICS meeting last month against "arbitrary sanctions, which are the exclusive prerogative of the UN Security Council".
"The XIV BRICS Summit held on June 23 this year was certainly another significant step in the development of the BRICS (Brazil, Russia, India, China and South Africa) grouping, which in essence reflects the formation of a new reality in international relations - the transition from a unipolar system to polycentric world order," he said.
Denis Alipov said that against the backdrop of geopolitical collisions, the five countries send a powerful message of common understanding of global processes - from reforming the multilateral system of economic governance to the situation in disarmament and non-proliferation, information security, counter-terrorism and other challenges.
"There was a clear consensus against arbitrary sanctions, which are the exclusive prerogative of the UN Security Council. We also shared disapproval of the distorting effects of any discriminatory measures in international trade, which mainly affect developing countries," he said.
He also suggested building a smooth and reliable system of mutual settlements as an alternative to a compromised mechanism based on the dominance of the US dollar, reported Sputnik.
"We suggest developing a new international currency, to connect the banks of the BRICS countries to the Russian System for Transfer of Financial Messages, SPFS (a SWIFT analogue), to integrate national payment systems into a unified network for cross-border clearing settlements," he said.
"Clearly, no less important are steps to strengthen BRICS' sectoral cooperation, which, according to the results of this year's work, continues to expand in the spheres of health, science and technology, space, etc. The New Development Bank, having a loan portfolio of (USD) 29Bln, stands out for its successful project activities," he added.
The Russian envoy said he believes that the BRICS, contrary to criticism, "will have an increasing influence on world processes".
Asked how does India and China's interaction within the BRICS framework unfold against the backdrop of the territorial dispute between the two countries, he said interaction within BRICS is "mature and constructive".
"The active participation of India and China in all BRICS events this year clearly demonstrates this. The most important thing is that the member states use this platform not to antagonize each other but to promote mutually beneficial cooperation and synergy of interests," said Alipov.
"The 'Five' offer an extensive common agenda on these very foundations, that in one way or other will also contribute to overcoming bilateral disagreements," he added. (ANI)