Brics Eyeing National Currencies for Trade to Counter US Threat

Brazil will host the 30th Conference of Parties (COP30) later this year under the shadow of the United States (US) exiting the forum. At the same time, the world is coming to terms with the tariff threats of the US and a renewed push for fossil fuels. Amid these concerns, Brazil is optimistic about participation by economic actors, civil society, and businesses in the US to fight climate change, says Kenneth Da Nóbrega, Brazilian ambassador to India and Bhutan, in an interview to Puja Das in New Delhi. He says Brazil, Russia, India, China, and South Africa (Brics) have been discussing possible mechanisms of exchange in national currencies to foster trade and financial flows among the group members to tackle the tariff tussle unleashed by the US. Edited excerpts:

- Kenneth Da Nóbrega, Brazilian ambassador to India and Bhutan

How are the Brics members, especially Brazil and India, planning to facilitate trade after the threat from US President Donald Trump that they may face 100 per cent tariffs "if they want to play games with the dollar"?

The Brics countries have been discussing mechanisms of exchange in their own currencies to foster trade and financial flows among them. This initiative's goal is to strengthen economic relations among the members and to contribute to a more democratic and diversified international economic environment in which countries will not depend on a restrictive list of currencies to trade in. The mechanism is not directed against any individual currency. It aims at giving the members more flexibility in their own exchanges.

Are the two countries looking at new sectors to further Brazil-India bilateral cooperation?

I have been here for one and a half years. In this period, I have received over 60 missions from Brazil, mostly led by high-level officials at federal or state level. These missions always include business persons and, in most cases, they focus on energy, defence, agriculture, and pharmaceuticals.

In pharmaceuticals, one of the avenues of cooperation between India and Brazil, we want to be a producer of active ingredients of medicines for diabetes, and painkillers, paracetamol, and antibiotics, among others.

As Brazil produces small amounts of these active ingredients, the idea is to look for cooperation with big Indian companies to first set up their production units based on imported active ingredients and then phasing in the production of ingredients there so that Brazil can acquire the technology to produce and, to a certain extent, be self-reliant.