Iran Proposes Anti-Sanctions Coalition to Enhance Trade Security within BRICS

By Staff, Agencies

Ali Akbar Ahmadian, Secretary of Iran’s Supreme National Security Council [SNSC], has proposed the formation of an anti-sanctions alliance to bolster trade and financial security among BRICS nations and the Global South.

He presented this idea at a high-level security officials' meeting held in Saint Petersburg, Russia, on Wednesday.

Ahmadian emphasized the need for BRICS and Global South countries to collaborate on ensuring security across various domains through multilateralism and a redefined global order.

He highlighted that economic security, including energy, food, financial, maritime, cultural, psychological, cyber, environmental and health security, requires collective efforts and the establishment of modern institutions based on this new order.

“The proposed alliance would play a crucial role in creating economic, commercial, and financial security, as well as in implementing mechanisms to combat money laundering,” Ahmadian stated.

He noted the increasing global shift towards a multilateral world and criticized the inefficacy of existing international structures that have been influenced by U.S. interests. “These structures have been manipulated by the United States and its allies, proving ineffective in establishing lasting peace and stability, and have been used to promote terrorism and sanctions,” he said.

Ahmadian pointed out that the international system is transitioning from a unipolar to a multipolar order, with the decline of US hegemonic power and the rise of new power blocs such as the Shanghai Cooperation Organization and BRICS signaling a new era of international relations.

The meeting in Saint Petersburg included representatives from BRICS+ countries, such as Indonesia, Turkey, Kazakhstan, Serbia, Thailand, Belarus, Vietnam, Venezuela, Uzbekistan, Nicaragua, Cuba, Azerbaijan, Bahrain, Bangladesh, Sri Lanka, Mauritania and Laos.

Iran officially joined BRICS at the beginning of this year, alongside Argentina, Egypt, Ethiopia, the UAE, and Saudi Arabia. BRICS, originally comprising Brazil, Russia, India, China, and South Africa, represents approximately 40% of the global population and a quarter of the world’s GDP.