No turning back on BRICS independent payment system

There is no turning back on plans to build an independent payment system for BRICS, all that’s left is for member states to take what their leaders have come up with and run with it, Russian deputy foreign minister and BRICS Sherpa Sergey Ryabkov told reporters after a meeting of Sherpas and Su-sherpas.

"The glass is always half-full; it is never half-empty," Ryabkov said when answering a question about the state of affairs with creating an independent payment system within BRICS. "We can measure how full the glass is in different ways but this ultimately depends on who is holding this glass in their hands. Therefore, we’ve made significant strides today. How much time it will take to fill <…> the framework we’ve established with tangible actions depends on us - on BRICS and on the global majority," the diplomat said.

According to the deputy minister, BRICS is creating a payment structure that countries of the global majority can use to protect themselves from "hostile states" who want to do them harm. "A critical milestone - a point of no return - has been passed, and how quickly things develop going forward depends on how leaders articulate this and how effectively financial experts, bankers and diplomats whose job this is tackle the challenge. We will do everything in our power to ensure success," he added.