Ryabkov's harsh words to the West about Iran: I don't know if they have a conscience
Russian Deputy Foreign Minister Sergey Ryabkov stated that Israel's attack on Iran was realized as a result of a "sense of impunity" with the support of Western countries. Ryabkov emphasized that Israel will face a worse security situation for itself after this action.
Russian Deputy Foreign Minister and Russia's BRICS Sherpa Sergey Ryabkov evaluated Israel's latest attack on Iran and the future of the BRICS group in an interview with the TASS news agency.
Ryabkov stated that the attack was the result of a "sense of impunity" with the support of Western countries, and emphasized that Israel will face a worse security situation for itself after this action.
'Israel will face a worse security situation'
Stating that Israel's attack on Iran was not a surprise to them, Ryabkov stated that it is clear that the tension has escalated in recent days.
"The attack took place just one day after the anti-Iranian decision, which was adopted by the pressure of the Western group in the Board of Directors of the International Atomic Energy Agency (UAEA)," Ryabkov said, drawing attention to the timing of the attack.
Ryabkov noted that this situation gives Israel a sense of impunity and is a confirmation that it has received unconditional support from Western states.
“No matter how irreparable the damage Israel has now claimed to have caused and reached the targets, they will eventually face a worse security situation than before this action. The determined attitude of the Iranian side says it all," he said.
'I don't know if they have a conscience'
Ryabkov, who harshly criticized the attitude of Britain, France and Germany, stated that while these countries should double their political and diplomatic solution efforts, he presented what happened as "Iran's crime, that's why it was shot".
Describing this situation as a "terrible deviation" and "an abnormality in the perception of the world," Ryabkov said, "It is terrible that England, France and Germany present what happened in this way, in a way that I do not know if their consciences remain."
'BRICS is an alternative center of attraction to the West'
Ryabkov said he was confident that the BRICS would remain a “non-West, not anti-West” structure and strengthen its role as a center of attraction for alternative approaches to the West.
Stating that despite the pressure, intimidation and blackmail attempts of the West, the group's role is increasing every year, Ryabkov said, "If such attempts were successful, we would not see the role of the union increase year after year."
Emphasizing that the agenda of the BRICS is constantly expanding, Ryabkov said, “The final document of the first summit in 2009 consisted of 14 paragraphs. Now we publish about a hundred paragraphs of documents every year. We have to say our word on many issues, from artificial intelligence to new vaccines to the creation of a payment system that is immune to Western sanctions," he said.
Financial system reform and the BRICS Bridge
Ryabkov stated that one of the main objectives of the BRICS was fair representation in the Bretton-Woods institutions (IMF and the World Bank), but reforms in this area have been in place for years.
Stating that this situation is not a reason to give up efforts to reform existing institutions, Ryabkov said, “We are not creating anything in place of existing institutions. We want to have an alternative tool to solve our own tasks, but also to continue to reform what is available,” he said.
Admitting that there are difficulties in the implementation of projects with Russia's New Development Bank (BRICS bank) due to the fear of secondary sanctions, Ryabkov said, “We have plans that we discuss with the bank's management and believe it's completely work. I hope we will get out of this recession soon," he said.
The deputy minister also added that they are working on systems such as "BRICS Bridge" and "BRICS Clear", which will allow countries to compensate for the imbalances in bilateral trade in a multilateral format.
Priority in India's presidency will be the fight against terrorism
Referring to the priorities of India, which will take over the BRICS presidency after Brazil, Ryabkov stated that finance, economy and trade issues will be at the center.
“Secondly, I have no doubt that we will take the next big step in the fight against terrorism during India's presidency. This issue is extremely important for India and is extremely current for us for obvious reasons. We need to shift practical operational interaction and best practices within BRICS," he added.