President Vladimir Putin.
Credit: Reuters Photo
Moscow: President Vladimir Putin on Thursday criticised the West for demanding a so-called "rules-based world order" and said that the next BRICS summit under Russia's presidency in 2024 will be dedicated to establishing a "fair" world order.
Addressing a year-end news conference that lasted over four hours, Putin said the next BRICS summit in the Russian city of Kazan, under Russia’s chairmanship, will influence the current situation to move “in the right direction.”
The so-called “rules-based world order” does not actually exist because the rules change every day depending on the political agenda and the interests and whims of those promoting the prevailing narrative, he said.
"As for the ‘rules-based world order,’ there are no such rules; in reality, they change every day depending on the current political agenda and the transitory interests of those [who are constantly] talking about it,” he was quoted as saying by the official Tass news agency.
He said the summit will "demonstrate that there are enough forces in this world, powerful countries who want to live not by those unwritten rules, but rather by the rules enshrined in fundamental, cornerstone documents, which include the United Nations Charter..."
Russia's work under its BRICS presidency will be dedicated to a "fair world order," he said, the official Sputnik news agency reported.
The US-led West has been criticising Putin for invading Ukraine and breaking the rules-based international order.
On Tuesday, after he met Ukraine President Volodymyr Zelenskyy at the White House, President Joe Biden again highlighted Russia's violation of the rules-based international order.
"President Biden stressed that Russia will not outlast the collective support for Ukraine by a coalition of over fifty countries brought together by US leadership in defence of a rules-based international order based on a respect for sovereignty and territorial integrity of all states," the White House said in a statement.
In August, Putin said that the next BRICS summit may take place in Kazan in October 2024, with the specific dates still to be coordinated via diplomatic channels.
According to him, about 200 political, economic and social events are in the works, to coincide with Russia’s tenure as BRICS chair, and will be hosted by more than a dozen Russian cities.
In April, Putin named Kazan as the site of the 2024 summit meeting bringing together the leaders of the BRICS member states, which will number up to 11 countries next year.
The five-nation grouping BRICS (Brazil-Russia-India-China-South Africa) brings together five of the largest developing countries of the world, representing 41 per cent of the global population, 24 per cent of the global GDP and 16 per cent of the global trade.
At the last BRICS Summit in South Africa's Johannesburg in August, the leaders of the BRICS decided to admit Argentina, Egypt, Ethiopia, Iran, Saudi Arabia and the UAE as the new members of the grouping.
During the meeting that lasted just over four hours, Putin also backed calls for preserving the veto mechanism at the UN Security Council.
It is important to keep the UN veto mechanism in place, otherwise, the organisation will turn into a mere talkfest, Putin said.
In the 15-member UN Security Council, the five permanent members - the US, the UK, France, Russia and China - enjoy veto powers.
“This [veto mechanism] makes a lot of sense. Having a veto means that any actions a country perceives as hostile do not happen. And this is important. So, it is vital to preserve such mechanisms in the United Nations. Otherwise, the UN will turn into a mere talkfest,” the Russian president said.
He recalled that something similar happened after World War I.
“But this in no way means that we should not look for consensus,” he stressed.
In his words, “there is nothing unusual” about the United Nations being a place of different viewpoints.
“During the Cold War, various forces, various countries often blocked these or those resolutions supported by other countries. However the United Nations was originally meant to look for consensus. And no resolution can be passed until such a consensus is reached. Nothing abnormal is happening in the United Nations. Things have always been this way, especially during the Cold War,” he said.
He also recalled former Soviet Foreign Minister Andrey Gromyko, who was dubbed in the press as "Mr. No" because the Soviet Union often vetoed UN resolutions.