Russia asked Brazil support from the International Monetary Fund, the world bank and the G20 group of major economies to help it counter the crippling sanctions imposed by the West since invaded Ukraine, according to a letter seen by Archyde.com.
Russian Finance Minister Anton Siluanov wrote to Economy Minister Paulo Guedes requesting Brazil’s “support to prevent political accusations and attempts at discrimination in international financial institutions and multilateral forums.”
Work is under way behind the scenes at the IMF and World Bank to limit or even expel Russia from the decision-making process,” Siluanov wrote.
The letter, which does not mention the war in Ukraine, is dated March 30 and was transmitted to the Brazilian minister by the Russian ambassador in Brasilia on Wednesday.
As you know, Russia is going through a challenging period of economic and financial turbulence caused by the sanctions imposed by the United States and its allies,” the Russian minister said.
US Treasury Secretary Janet Yellen said last week that the US would not participate in any G20 meeting if Russia were present, citing the invasion.
Almost half of Russia’s international reserves have been frozen and foreign trade transactions are blocked, including those with its partners from emerging market economies, Siluanov said.
The United States and its satellites follow a policy of isolating Russia from the international community,” he added.
Siluanov said the sanctions violate the principles of the Bretton Woods agreements that established the IMF and the World Bank.
We believe that the current crisis caused by the unprecedented economic sanctions launched by the G7 countries could have lasting consequences unless we take joint measures to resolve it,” he wrote to Guedes.
Brazil’s far-right president, Jair Bolsonaro, who visited Moscow just days before the invasion, has kept Brazil neutral on the Ukraine crisis and has not condemned the invasion, drawing criticism from the US president’s administration. Joe Biden.
Bolsonaro expressed “solidarity” when he visited Russian President Vladimir Putin in the Kremlin on February 16, about a week before the invasion began.
Brazilian Foreign Minister Carlos Franca has said that Brazil opposes the expulsion of Russia from the G20 that the United States is seeking.
The most important thing right now is to have all the international forums, the G20, the WTO, the FAO, fully functioning, and for that all countries must be present, including Russia,” Franca said at a Senate hearing on March.
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