SCO, BRICS "movements" to counter global hegemony, unilateralism: Iranian president

TEHRAN, Aug. 31 (Xinhua) -- Iranian President Ebrahim Raisi said on Thursday that the Shanghai Cooperation Organization (SCO) and BRICS mechanisms contribute to countering the global hegemonic system and unilateralism.

He made the remarks at a meeting with a number of Sunni clerics and scholars in the Iranian capital of Tehran, according to a statement published on the website of the president's office.

Raisi said at present, with the decline of hegemonic powers, especially the United States, the world's conditions are changing.

He added that the SCO and BRICS alike are "movements to counter the hegemonic system's domination-seeking measures and unilateralism."

On August 24, Iran, along with Argentina, Egypt, Ethiopia, Saudi Arabia, and the United Arab Emirates, was officially invited to join BRICS, a group of emerging economies comprising Brazil, Russia, India, China, and South Africa.

In early July, Iran became a full member of the SCO at the organization's 23rd meeting of the Council of Heads of State.