Iran, now a full member of BRICS, has quickly emerged as a key advocate for revamping the bloc’s financial and environmental agenda. At the 11th BRICS Environment Ministerial in Brasilia earlier this year, Iran proposed creating a Green Innovation Fund to increase climate-friendly investment into developing nations, while simultaneously renewing calls to accelerate de-dollarization across BRICS – both strategic initiatives to broaden BRICS’ relevance beyond Western systems. IRNA English +1.2
Green Innovation Fund: A Climate Financing Blueprint
Shina Ansari, Iran’s Vice President and head of its Department of Environment, proposed creating a BRICS Green Innovation Fund at April’s ministerial meeting. As intended to serve as a financial mechanism to fund climate adaptation and mitigation projects in developing economies, the fund represents Iran’s desire to incorporate environmental sustainability into BRICS institutional architecture. Ansari highlighted Iran’s commitment to environmental cooperation despite unilateral sanctions, positioning this multilateral solution to global environmental challenges as evidenced by this proposal. (Tabbak +1)
De-Flarization of Economic Activities: From Rhetoric to Strategy
Iran also took an aggressive stance toward financial independence. Kazem Jalali, Iran’s ambassador to Russia, highlighted BRICS members’ potential to reduce U.S. dollar dependence by projecting it will fall from 58% of central bank reserves today to 35-40% by 2030. Jalali also asserted that these five blocs could together account for nearly half of global GDP and substantial amounts of exports by 2030 (Wikipedia/IRNA English + Dunham’s.com).
BRICS+ expansion–now including Iran, Egypt, Ethiopia, UAE and Indonesia–has enhanced this push. By adding these countries, its size, economic potential and geopolitical weight have all increased further.
Braumiller Law Group +5
+5 BRICS has already made impressive institutional progress with the New Development Bank, Contingent Reserve Arrangement and BRICS Pay platforms that aim to reduce dollar dependency. As noted in Council on Foreign Relations’ publication as well as Wikipedia and Dunham.com (dunham.com for short).
Challenges Ahead
Although ambitious, de-dollarization faces significant systemic hurdles. The U.S. dollar remains the dominant currency for international trade and finance due to its liquidity and deep integration, particularly among emerging markets. Many intra-BRICS transactions still utilize it as an intermediary currency and a substantial share of cross-border debt remains dollar denominated (carnegieendowment.org/ +2, dunham.com/+2).
Experts warn that without major reforms to financial infrastructure and liquidity support, de-dollarization goals risk remaining symbolic. B. Dunham of Dunham.com notes:
Why It Matters Its Iran’s dual-track approach reflects BRICS’ wider repositioning as a forum for Global South cooperation, climate action and systemic reform. The green fund proposal signifies a shift toward collective financing models outside traditional Western institutions while its financial strategy seeks to reduce vulnerability against dollar sanctions or dollar recalls.
Success of these ambitious ambitions rests upon implementation–whether Iran’s proposals find support from members and materialize into operational vehicles; whether BRICS can successfully navigate internal economic disparities and external pressure to construct viable alternatives to U.S. financial architecture.