President-elect Trump still has officials worried about the possible application of a 100% tariff regime to the BRICS bloc. Alexander Babakov, Deputy Chairman of the Russian State Duma, recently called out these tariff threats as a bluff, stating that while it would be possible to apply these measures, it was unlikely due to the repercussions of such actions.

In an opinion piece published on Izvestia, Babakov considered the high interdependence of today’s globalized economy, the existence of alternative payment methods, and the internal opposition that such a measure would garner would hinder Trump’s initiative.

In his tariff statement directed to the BRICS, Trump argued that this regime would be applied only if these countries created a new currency and decided to abandon the U.S. dollar. Babakov countered this idea, stating that a single currency was not necessary for the future of the block, and that a multilateral payment platform would help reach the same goal.

Read more: Prelude to Currency War? Trump Threatens 100% Tariffs to BRICS Countries Abandoning the ‘Mighty’ Dollar

In this sense, Babakov stated that this payment system, the development of national digital currencies, the establishment of an offshore ruble, and a clearing system for these currencies would help BRICS to isolate their trading settlements from the U.S. dollar, which has become a political weapon.

He explained:

Digital currencies provide instant and secure transactions, the offshore ruble attracts large international companies, and the clearing system supports long-term settlements and large contracts.

Distributed technology, such as blockchain, would have a key role in the design and sustainability of these settlement platforms, helping carry over payments transparently.

Babakov had referred to this platform before, also remarking on the pivotal role this exchange would have on the BRICS future. In October, he acknowledged that this unified clearing exchange “will be the key to the economic sovereignty and independence of our countries.”

Read more: BRICS Unified Exchange to Leverage Blockchain and Virtual Currency for Settlements

免责声明：本文章仅代表作者个人观点，不代表本平台的立场和观点。本文章仅供信息分享，不构成对任何人的任何投资建议。用户与作者之间的任何争议，与本平台无关。如网页中刊载的文章或图片涉及侵权，请提供相关的权利证明和身份证明发送邮件到support@aicoin.com，本平台相关工作人员将会进行核查。