Russia Supports Iran’s Membership in the BRICS New Development Bank

TEHRAN (Iran News) According to IRNA reports from the Iranian Embassy in Moscow on Wednesday evening, Ivan Chepskov made these remarks during a meeting with Iran’s ambassador to Russia, Kazzem Jalali, who had requested Russia’s support for Iran’s accession to the BRICS New Development Bank.

Chepskov also called for increased cooperation between Russia and Iran in countering Western sanctions that he described as unjust. He expressed satisfaction with the development of bilateral cooperation, especially in banking and finance sectors, and stated Russia’s readiness to continue and deepen these efforts.

Iran’s ambassador in Russia also highlighted the expanding cooperation between the two countries across all sectors, emphasizing that banking and financial collaborations have seen significant growth over the past two years. Jalali added that Iran-Russia relations in insurance and taxation are also developing at a promising pace.

Referring to both countries’ membership in BRICS, the ambassador stated that bilateral cooperation in banking and finance could serve as a successful model for the BRICS group.

According to IRNA, the New Development Bank (NDB) was established by BRICS member countries under an intergovernmental agreement signed during the sixth BRICS summit in Brazil in 2014. The bank was created to support various projects within BRICS nations and developing countries.

BRICS was founded in 2010 in Yekaterinburg, Russia, with Brazil, Russia, India, and China as founding members. South Africa joined the group a year later. Subsequently, Iran, Egypt, Ethiopia, and the United Arab Emirates joined BRICS at the start of 2024 (equivalent to December 2022). It was also announced that Indonesia would join BRICS from the beginning of 2025 (equivalent to December 2023). BRICS also introduced a list of partner countries.

The BRICS finance ministers and central bank governors held their 13th and 14th meetings in Rio de Janeiro, Brazil, on July 13-14 of this year. During the summit, Iran’s central bank delegation emphasized the importance of facilitating the admission of new members into the BRICS New Development Bank (NDB) and highlighted the bank’s role in financing infrastructural and sustainable development projects.

Earlier, in May 2024, Mohammad-Reza Farzin, Governor of the Central Bank of Iran, announced that Iran’s relations with BRICS had begun over three years ago. He also stated that Iran is currently applying for membership in the BRICS New Development Bank (NDB), which he expected to be operational soon. Negotiations with BRICS members, including India, South Africa, and China, are already underway.

Dilma Rousseff, President of the BRICS New Development Bank, recently expressed her positive stance regarding Iran’s accession during a meeting with Farzin in Beijing. She said that the bank is considering Iran’s membership favorably in upcoming BRICS decision-making sessions.

Rousseff had previously announced that the bank intends to use national currencies for investments in the private sectors of BRICS economies. She emphasized that the bank prioritizes sustainable development, technology transfer, expanding its activities in the Global South, and maximizing the use of national currencies for financing private sector projects.

She also noted that the BRICS New Development Bank will support infrastructure projects that particularly address climate change impacts. The bank’s focus areas include renewable energy sources such as wind, solar, hydroelectric power, and energy transmission networks, along with waste recycling initiatives.