Are the US and Europe Working Frantically to Derail BRICS?
I managed to snag my globe-trotter friend, Pepe Escobar, for a video chat on Friday. Pepe had just returned to Paris from the St. Petersburg International Economic Forum (SPIEF). SPIEF is an amazing experience. I was fortunate to attend last year. It is an annual event, held in June during the White Nights of St. Petersburg. Representatives from more than 130 countries attended.
As a result of Russia’s Special Military Operation (SMO) and the ensuing flood of Western economic sanctions, Russia and China have accelerated their economic cooperation and integration. Although India, Brazil and South Africa were founding members of BRICS, Russia and China remain the major players in driving efforts to create an alternative to the US-led financial system. Countries like Indonesia, Malaysia and Vietnam are expected to play a more critical role as BRICS expands in the Global South.
Iran is a full member of BRICS, and I believe that is one of the underlying reasons for the US-supported attack on Iran on June 13. Iran’s enrichment of uranium is just a sideshow. The real objective is to remove the existing government and replace it with one committed to upholding the primacy of the US dollar, especially in oil transactions.
One development to keep your eye on is the Cross-Border Interbank Payment System (CIPS). CIPS is a payment infrastructure launched by the People’s Bank of China in 2015 to facilitate and streamline cross-border transactions denominated in Chinese yuan (RMB). Unlike SWIFT, which primarily acts as a messaging network, CIPS provides both clearing and settlement services, making RMB transactions faster, more cost-effective, and more secure.
CIPS operates as a wholesale payment system, enabling direct onshore settlement of international RMB payments within China’s domestic financial system. Financial institutions can join CIPS as either direct or indirect participants: direct participants are typically large banks that hold accounts directly with the PBOC and can settle payments for themselves and others, while indirect participants access CIPS services through a corresponding direct participant. As of early 2025, CIPS had 170 direct participants and nearly 1,500 indirect participants, connecting banks in over 119 countries and regions.
The system plays a key role in internationalizing the RMB, supporting cross-border trade and investment, and reducing reliance on the US dollar. It also supports China’s Belt and Road Initiative and the development of Shanghai as an international financial center. CIPS processes millions of transactions annually, with trillions of yuan settled through its network.
Key Improvements of CIPS:
Direct Clearing and Settlement:
• CIPS processes and settles RMB transactions onshore in real time or near real time, reducing reliance on intermediary banks and eliminating delays associated with correspondent banking models.
• SWIFT does not provide settlement services; it only transmits payment messages, which then require additional clearing and settlement steps through other systems.
Speed and Efficiency:
• CIPS achieves average settlement times of around 300 milliseconds for direct participants, making transactions much faster than traditional SWIFT-based RMB transfers.
• SWIFT-based transactions can take up to 48 hours when routed through offshore RMB clearing hubs.
Cost Reduction:
• CIPS transaction fees average 0.01%—a fraction of SWIFT’s costs—making RMB trade settlements significantly cheaper, especially for Belt and Road Initiative countries.
• CIPS reduces the need for multiple correspondent banks and associated foreign exchange costs.
Operational Features:
• CIPS operates 24/7 (with extended weekend hours), supporting global business needs, and is integrated with advanced features like Delivery Versus Payment (DVP) for securities and Payment Versus Payment (PVP) for forex.
• CIPS also offers ISO 20022 messaging and is piloting integration with the digital yuan (e-CNY), enabling faster and more secure cross-border transfers.
• Promotion of RMB Internationalization:
• By making cross-border RMB payments more efficient and accessible, CIPS supports the broader international use of the Chinese yuan, reducing reliance on the US dollar.
I am not suggesting that SWIFT is going to disappear anytime soon, but it is an archaic technology. The events of the last three years have persuaded both Russia and China that they can no longer risk being held hostage to a US-controlled financial system. I think CIPS will play a growing role in weaning nations of the Global South from being controlled by the US dollar. As with all wars, it is largely about money and who controls it.
Pepe provides an excellent summary of SPIEF and the current status of BRICS:
The real deal is always about the doesky. It may have been Brian Berletic, though I can't remember with certainty, that caste the U.S. attacks on Iran as "The First BRICS War," in large part due to a north/south "corridor" of trade between Russia, China, Iran, and The South--or something like that--that the U.S. wants to prevent/destroy.
Other motivations (in my humble, or not-so-humble opinion) include:
1. Maintaining the illusion of Euro-supremacy over all. See my 19-part series, "Is this Black enough for you? Has global racial supremacy been an unspoken force driving U.S foreign policy?"
https://ronchism.substack.com/p/part-19-and-final-is-this-black-enough?utm_source=publication-search
2. Maintaining the illusion [amongst extremely gullible, brainwashed, but politically active VOTING members of "Christian" America] of "Judeo-Christian" supremacy over all. See my article entitled, "Do not underestimate Zio-Christian eschatological madness."
https://ronchism.substack.com/p/do-not-underestimate-zio-christian?utm_source=publication-search,
3. Maintaining the illusion, to American citizens, that citizens are powerless. It is my opinion that the government of my country, the United States, most likely is deathly afraid of an open and serious rebellion, by U.S. citizens, against the government. So, the U.S. government attemps to maintain the ILLUSION of invincibility by presenting itself as all-powerful over the entire world. Again, that attempt is to keep U.S. citizens fearful of rebelling in a serious manner.
My 2 cents.
There are at least two ways to acquire and maintain hegemony. The better-known one is to carry a big club and hit hard. The lesser-known one is to provide cheap but good enough services and goods. Laozi Tao-Te-Ching argued for the latter.