SOCHI, September 18 (RIA Novosti) - The creation of several global reserve currencies would not harm the interests of the United States, Russian Prime Minister Vladimir Putin said on Friday.
Speaking at an annual investment forum in Russia's Black Sea resort of Sochi, the prime minister said the imbalance of money supply in the United States compared with the rest of the global economy was one reason for the current financial crisis.
"There is only one solution — a long-term agreement on common rules of conduct or on several global reserve currencies. To my mind this poses no threat to the U.S. economy, which would only benefit from it in the future," Putin said.
A Kremlin aide predicted on Tuesday the establishment of five or six currency unions based on new reserve currencies within the next 10 years.
Arkady Dvorkovich said talks were currently being held to establish currency alliances in the Middle East, Asia and Latin America.
A UN Conference on Trade and Development report released in early September said the dollar's role in international trade should be reduced by establishing a new currency to protect emerging markets from the "confidence game" of financial speculation.
It said UN member states should agree on a global reserve bank to issue the currency and to monitor the national exchange rates of its members.
