The Independent UK is reporting that several nations have met in secret to orchestrate the demise of the dollar.

In the most profound financial change in recent Middle East history, Gulf Arabs are planning – along with China, Russia, Japan and France – to end dollar dealings for oil, moving instead to a basket of currencies including the Japanese yen and Chinese yuan, the euro, gold and a new, unified currency planned for nations in the Gulf Co-operation Council, including Saudi Arabia, Abu Dhabi, Kuwait and Qatar.

Secret meetings have already been held by finance ministers and central bank governors in Russia, China, Japan and Brazil to work on the scheme, which will mean that oil will no longer be priced in dollars.

—more–

The Americans, who are aware the meetings have taken place – although they have not discovered the details – are sure to fight this international cabal which will include hitherto loyal allies Japan and the Gulf Arabs. Against the background to these currency meetings, Sun Bigan, China’s former special envoy to the Middle East, has warned there is a risk of deepening divisions between China and the US over influence and oil in the Middle East. “Bilateral quarrels and clashes are unavoidable,” he told the Asia and Africa Review. “We cannot lower vigilance against hostility in the Middle East over energy interests and security.“

This sounds like a dangerous prediction of a future economic war between the US and China over Middle East oil – yet again turning the region’s conflicts into a battle for great power supremacy.

[emphasis added]

This should do wonders for oil and gas prices. Going for gold might not be a bad idea over the next several years.

UPDATE 10-06-09 @1:00 EDT:

It looks like the news of these supposed “secret meetings” is now hitting the precious metals, commodities and stock markets, with large surges in all asset classes.

However, Yahoo Finance is reporting that Oil states say no talks on replacing dlr .

Is this a set up to get more money into gold/oil/commodities/stocks before the next wave down?

Big oil producing nations denied on Tuesday a newspaper report that Gulf Arab states were in secret talks with Russia, China, Japan and France to replace the U.S. dollar with a basket of currencies in trading oil.

The U.S. dollar eased in response to the report, which was written by The Independent’s Middle East correspondent Robert Fisk and cited unidentified sources in Gulf Arab states and Chinese banking sources in Hong Kong.

Also of interest: Jim Willie, in an article published May 2009, discusses The Hitmen Cometh: Third Parties Rumored to be Attacking US Dollar, Treasury Bonds and Gold Suppression and is well worth reading, as well.