Jakarta. BRICS member Russia is hoping to be able to use local currencies when trading with Indonesia one day, although Moscow has not set a target for when the use of rupiah and ruble in bilateral commerce could take place.

Russia has sent some of its senior officials to Indonesia in a move to forge stronger economic ties with the Southeast Asian nation. A Russian diplomat revealed early this year that both economies had engaged in talks to explore a local currency settlement deal as Indonesia joined the BRICS club.

On Monday, Russia’s Deputy Trade Minister Alexey Gruzdev told reporters that Moscow’s interest in the deal remained unchanged.

“Local currency settlement is one of the options. Nowadays, we [Russia] do trade in currencies alternative to the US dollar and euros. We see many perspectives for local currencies because it ensures stability,” Gruzdev said on the sidelines of a business forum in Jakarta.

"But it is also for the banks to be more active. That is what we advocate for, to have direct correspondent accounts that would serve the bilateral trade,” Gruzdev said.

Western sanctions have shut Russia out from international payments and the dollar-driven settlement systems. Russia has struck some local currency settlement deals with India and China -- both also part of BRICS. Reports show that Russian rubles and Chinese yuan already made up over 90 percent of their bilateral trade. The ruble and rupee have also become the go-to currencies when Russia does business with India. 

Russian Ambassador to Indonesia Sergei Tolchenov said in late January that talks were underway for local currency settlement with Jakarta. Indonesia’s entry into BRICS gave impetus to the possible local currency pact. 

BRICS is a bloc of emerging economies that is eyeing to reduce the US dollar's primacy in international trade. The group brings together Brazil, Russia, India, China, South Africa, Egypt, Ethiopia, Indonesia, Iran, and the United Arab Emirates. Sergei also told the Jakarta Globe at the time the “de-dollarization” that BRICS had in mind was not to create a common currency between its members but was more on lessening global trade’s reliance on the American dollar through local currency use.

Official government figures showed Indonesia-Russia trade amounted to almost $3.6 billion in 2024. However, Indonesia ran a $925.6 million deficit with Russia that year. The trade imbalance had significantly improved compared to the $1.5 billion deficit logged in 2023. Indonesia is already trading with countries like China, Malaysia, and Thailand in local currencies. 

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