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Iranian President Masoud Pezeshkian and Russian President Vladimir Putin on Friday criticized Western sanctions on their economies and urged countries of the Global South to deepen trade relations as they addressed the BRICS Business Forum. "BRICS must create an environment in which no country can disrupt the legitimate trade of another country through monopolizing a financial instrument or technology," Pezeshkian said in New Delhi. He urged the bloc, which has sought to amplify the influence of the Global South, to expand the use of national currencies to trade among member countries. Pressure on Iran has entered a "dangerous phase," shifting from sanctions to military aggression by the U.S. and Israel, Pezeshkian said, adding that the impact of the war against Tehran was being felt beyond its borders, affecting regional and global stability. The conflicts have also disrupted global energy markets and pushed fuel prices sharply higher. U.S. diesel prices hit $6 per gallon on Friday for the first time, as fuel supply disruptions triggered by the Ukraine and Iran wars raised transportation costs across the entire economy. Since the start of the Iran war, global energy prices have spiked as the conflict has severely disrupted shipping through the Strait of Hormuz, an important waterway for transport of crude and gas from the Middle East. On Thursday, U.S. crude oil futures topped $100 per barrel for the first time since May in response to a sharp escalation in fighting between the U.S. and Iran this month. "Food and energy security are two fundamental pillars of economic security," the Iranian leader said Friday, adding that his country, with its vast energy reserves, was ready to be a strategic partner. Russia, another major energy producer, also faces extensive Western sanctions over its war against Ukraine. Moscow resumed air attacks on major Ukrainian cities after a brief pause for the visit of U.S. peace negotiators over the weekend. But despite U.S. President Donald Trump's assurance on Wednesday that a swift resolution to the Ukraine war could pave the way for the countries to fully restore trade and economic ties, Putin lambasted the West for its pressure tactics against Moscow. "More than 30,000 sanctions have been slapped on Russia, which is twice as many as the number of sanctions against all the other countries of the world combined," Putin said at the BRICS Business Forum. The Russian president said that countries "facing industrial decline and budget deficit" were trying to protect their "competitive edge" by imposing sanctions against Russia and Iran. Putin also claimed that over the last five years more than 40% of the world's incremental GDP has been produced by the BRICS countries, while the G7 countries only accounted for 29%. BRICS provided a "resilient and viable platform for global growth," Putin said, adding that Moscow is keen to pursue "promising initiatives" in tourism, trade and private sector investment from the Global South.
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