On December 16, PANews reported that Alexander Babakov, Deputy Chairman of the State Duma of Russia, publicly questioned the threat posed by former U.S. President Donald Trump to impose a 100% tariff system on BRICS countries. Babakov stated that despite Trump's threat, given the interdependence of the global economy, the existence of alternative payment solutions, and possible internal opposition that might arise, he believes the likelihood of implementing such extreme tariff measures is low.
In a commentary published in (Russian newspaper), Babakov further pointed out that BRICS countries do not need to rely on a unified currency, as a multilateral payment platform can also achieve economic goals. He emphasized that the development of digital currencies, offshore rubles, and clearing systems will help BRICS countries isolate trade settlements from the U.S. dollar to counter the influence of the dollar as a political weapon.
Babakov specifically mentioned that distributed technologies such as blockchain play a key role in designing and maintaining these settlement platforms, ensuring the transparency and security of payments. He had previously stated that this unified clearing transaction platform will be crucial for the economic sovereignty and independence of BRICS countries.