President Vladimir Putin used a speech to a summit of BRICS leaders on Wednesday to defend Russia’s war in Ukraine and praise the grouping as a counterbalance to US global dominance. Speaking by video link to leaders of the emerging economies of Brazil, Russia, India, China, and South Africa, Putin repeated the Kremlin narrative that his invasion, condemned by Ukraine and the West as an imperialist land grab, was a forced response by Moscow to Kyiv’s and Washington’s hostile actions.

During his 17-minute prerecorded address, Putin also argued that the bloc’s member states must abandon the dollar as the world’s dominant currency and begin trading in their national currencies. Such a shift, however, could be years away. According to IMF data, the dollar still accounts for 79% of world trade.

Putin also blamed the volatility in global markets for food and other commodities on Western sanctions. He said that although BRICS members have raised grain production, their exports have been “deliberately obstructed” by the imposition of sanctions. He did not explain what the restrictions on his country’s exports entailed. Still, in a tweet, he indicated that Russia can replace Ukraine as a wheat, vegetable oil supplier, and other commodity products.

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The BRICS was formed in 2001 to draw attention to the rapid economic growth of Brazil, Russia, India, and China. The idea was to project the countries’ growing clout into a future global economy less dominated by the United States and other Western powers.

The BRICS have held regular summits and have made progress on issues such as securing development financing and supporting the multipolarity of global affairs. However, the bloc needs help to articulate a cohesive vision. The emerging economies generally agree that the West holds too much sway in global affairs, but their leaders have yet to devise strategies to limit that influence.

A year into Russia’s full-scale war with Ukraine, Putin is trying to reframe the conflict in terms that appeal to his domestic audience. The Russian president has framed the fighting as a battle to save “the people of Donbas,” the eastern part of Ukraine occupied by Russia and its proxies since 2014. He argues that the war is about territory and protecting Russia’s citizens against the threat of “fascist” migrants. And he had portrayed the bloodshed in Ukraine as the kind of struggle that Russia underwent during World War II when it lost eight million men. The conflict is unlikely to end soon until Europe makes it clear that it stands with Ukraine and is prepared to defend its sovereignty. That may be why Ukraine’s President Volodymyr Zelenskiy welcomed the news this week that some European nations have agreed to donate F-16 fighter jets. That could help to defuse tensions and help Ukraine develop the capacity to resist Russian aggression.