MOSCOW, June 18. /TASS/. The developments within BRICS have drawn discontent not only from US President Donald Trump but the West as a whole, exposing its persistent self-interest in foreign policy matters, Russian Deputy Foreign Minister Sergey Ryabkov, who serves as Moscow’s BRICS sherpa, said in an interview with the TASS Analytical Center.
"The current discontent with BRICS goes far beyond the incumbent US president. This reveals the same issue we consistently face in relations with the West as a whole: a foreign policy egoism bordering on solipsism, where they only look inward and refuse to acknowledge any alternatives. Will it ever end? Well, life eventually teaches us all a lesson," Ryabkov pointed out.
When asked whether BRICS can maintain its paradigm of being "not anti-Western but non-Western" amid Western efforts to undermine integration in the Global South, the senior diplomat said: "I am more than confident that it will not only maintain this position but also strengthen its role as a magnet, a hub for approaches that offer alternatives to Western perspectives on many issues."
"For the first time, we have established a framework for partner states. Now they are able to engage with BRICS on a more formalized and hopefully productive basis than in the absence of this framework. The previous invitations to occasional events, especially high-level ones, often left such guest countries without lasting involvement," he added.
