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Iran, Malaysia, Turkey and Qatar are considering trade with each other to be settled in gold possible economic sanctions. Malaysian Prime Minister Mahathir Mohamad said this today during a meeting of several Islamic countries in Malaysia. He wants a gold-backed currency as an alternative to the US dollar in international payments.
At the end of the Kuala Lumpur meeting, Mahathir expressed his admiration for Iran and Qatar, two countries that have experience with economic sanctions. He also said that it is important for the Islamic world to become more independent, so that it can better defend itself against future threats.
"Now that the world is seeing countries making unilateral decisions, such as imposing sanctions, Malaysia and other countries should always be aware that sanctions can also be imposed on us. I have suggested that we reconsider the idea of trading among ourselves with the gold dinar or by barter. We are looking at this seriously and hope to find a system to put this into action."
Different Arab countries disconnected two years ago, their diplomatic and economic ties with Qatar. Iran has also been subject to US sanctions in recent years. Not only after the breakup of the international deal with Iran in 2018, but also before this deal was concluded in 2015.
Iran has already used gold to impose U.S. sanctions. avoid. In 2012, the country began trading gold with Turkey on a large scale as payment for foreign goods. The country was cut off from the international payment system by sanctions and therefore used gold as an alternative means of payment.
It is not the first time that the Malaysian prime minister has started talking about gold. Last summer he already came up with the proposal of a common gold-backed currency. Several countries in Southeast Asia can use such a currency for international transactions. This will make countries less dependent on dollars and transactions through the dollar system. Speaking at the Nikkei Future of Asia conference in Tokyo, Mahathir said:
"If we want to get closer to each other in the Far East, we have to start with a common trading currency. Not for local use, but for settling international trade. We now have to rely on the US dollar, but the dollar is not stable. So the currency we propose should be based on gold, because gold is much more stable.
If we use that currency to evaluate the exports and imports of countries, then we can settle with that currency. And that currency has to relate to the local currency through an exchange rate. And that is something that can be related to the performance of the country in question. This way, we know how much we owe and what we have to pay."
It is not the first time that the Malaysian prime minister has made striking statements. Earlier this year, he was also extensively in the news, after he examined the burden of proof of the JIT with regard to the MH17 air disaster. had questioned. On the basis of all the information available, he doubts whether Russia can be held liable for this.
This contribution comes from Geotrendlines
