New Delhi, March 28: The five Brics heads of government meet here tomorrow to possibly try and find “common denominators” on Iran and Syria and reject “unilateralism” in world politics.

The top leaders of Brazil, Russia, India, China and South Africa oppose “unilateral” US and EU-led economic sanctions on Iran and disagree with the West’s Syria strategy.

An attempt at finding “common denominators” on Iran and Syria will be a fitting answer to Brics detractors who term the group an empty acronym restricted to talking trade and business.

Indications that Brics leaders want to push for a more equitable world economic order could be seen in Brazilian President Dilma Rousseff’s accusation today that the West had “triggered the monetary tsunami”.

Brics trade ministers vowed that their countries would not kow-tow to US-led economic sanctions on Iran. They exchanged notes on how to put in place bulwarks to limit damage to their economies from future crises in Europe and the US.

Rousseff, whose attendance at the fourth Brics summit called “Partnership for Global Stability, Security and Prosperity” coincides with a bilateral state visit, quoted Tagore’s “Where the mind is without fear” while accepting an honorary Doctor of Letters from Delhi University.

She demanded reform of the UN Security Council, saying it was hard to imagine an international forum where the views of India and Brazil were not called for. She also pitched for reform of the World Bank and the International Monetary Fund.

“This (economic) crisis started in the developed world. It will not be overcome simply through measures of austerity, fiscal consolidations and depreciation of the labour force, let alone through quantitative easing policies that have triggered what can only be described as a monetary tsunami, have led to a currency war and have introduced new and perverse forms of protectionism in the world,” she said.

The Brazilian President, who also invoked Gandhi and Nehru, was critical of “unilateral actions” in world politics, a possible reference to the US’s handling of the crisis over Tehran’s alleged nuclear programme.

“We attach priority to dialogue and diplomacy and we reject unilateral actions and doctrines that emphasise the use of force, prejudiced and intolerant views. Our active involvement in major international debates has contributed to making global governance more democratic, legitimate and effective,” she said.

The issue of unilateralism on Iran and economic sanctions imposed on Tehran was discussed at the Brics trade ministers meeting.

“Yes, this was discussed. All Brics members are members of the UNSC. We respect UN resolutions... at the same time, the resolution does not forbid countries to engage in trade in essential commodities and what is required for human good,” said commerce minister Anand Sharma. He added that India would honour only UN imposed sanctions.

China’s commerce minister Chen Deming said his country was “not obliged to follow any domestic laws and rules of any particular country”.

Russian President Dmitri Medvedev stressed the need for Brics to consolidate its efforts on global issues.

“Brics is relatively a young entity. With the inclusion of South Africa, it has now become a global entity…. At international forums, we can consolidate our efforts and co-ordinate (more),” he said after he was conferred an honorary doctorate by JNU.

Official sources said Brics leaders — India’s Manmohan Singh, China’s Hu Jintao, Brazil’s Rousseff, South Africa’s Jacob Zuma and Russia’s Medvedev — would discuss West Asia and ways to enhance intra-Brics trade.

The leaders will discuss steps to overcome the Euro-zone crisis that has affected exports of all five members. They will also brainstorm the possibility of establishing a Brics development bank and sign an agreement to bring their stock exchanges closer.