Foreign Minister Sergey Lavrov gave an interview to Moskovsky Komsomolets daily covering various aspects of Russia’s policies, Foreign Ministry’s website reports and cites the Minister as saying, “We are to continuously ensure that the system based on the Western model of economic development or even the dominance of the dollar, which has been crudely abused recently, ceases to be something what we rely on. The Chinese are now creating their own system. We are creating the Eurasian Economic Union and coordinating it with China’s Belt and Road initiative. This is a long process of departing from the dollar and dependence on Washington’s whims and on what kind of administration will come to power there next and how it will manipulate things from Congress. But without these long-term plans, we will never rid ourselves of this dependence. We have to create a strategy that ultimately, albeit after an extended historical period, will ensure our country’s stability and independence.”
According to Lavrov, “The US and Europe already understand that Belt and Road initiative is a competitor to what is happening in the world now. It is not even limited to Eurasia but also involves Southeast Asia, Africa and Latin America. This reflects the fact that China has become a strong economic and financial power. Political influence comes with economic and financial power. It is inevitable.”
“We proceed from the premise that we will never take part in projects that are aimed at gaining unilateral advantages without account of the partner’s interests. The status of our relations with the PRC, which are now on an upswing unlike anything we have seen in all previous centuries, allows us to resolve issues by seeking compromise,” he said. “The EAEU has signed an agreement with the PRC. It is not preferential. We are not opening our markets to be instantly flooded with Chinese goods. The Chinese understand this and suggest forms of cooperation that will allow us, the EAEU, and, of course, them to benefit.”