Russia: G7 Dictating Bretton Woods Policies Unacceptable

Russia considers it unacceptable for the G7 to determine the policies and practices of the Bretton Woods Institutions (the World Bank and the International Monetary Fund), while the BRICS countries have no comparable influence, Foreign Minister Sergey Lavrov said at the BRICS ministerial meeting in New Delhi.

"The global financial system must be transparent and non-discriminatory, providing all participants with equal access to opportunities and instruments," he noted at the second plenary session titled "20 Years of BRICS: Joint Efforts for Sustainability, Innovation, Cooperation, and Balanced Development." "It is unacceptable that the so-called G7, which accounts for less than a third of global output, continues to determine the policies and practices of the Bretton Woods Institutions, while the BRICS countries, which account for about 40% of global gross domestic product, have no comparable influence. We consider completing the reform of the International Monetary Fund’s quota calculation and distribution system a priority task," the top diplomat emphasized.

According to Lavrov, the International Monetary Fund "remains preoccupied with promoting the interests of shareholders from Western minority states, while relegating the real needs of the Global South and East to the periphery of its attention."

The Russian foreign minister pointed to a significant gap between the actual distribution of global economic potential and the level of representation of the Global South in global governance. "In key international institutions, including the UN and the Bretton Woods system - institutions that were formed under a completely different balance of power - the dominance of the so-called historical West persists to this day," he stressed. "Correcting this injustice should be facilitated by realigning the activities of the relevant structures in accordance with the actual balance of power in the modern world. This will enhance the effectiveness of the entire international architecture and eliminate the dividing lines created within it," Lavrov concluded.