Brazilian Foreign Minister Mauro Vieira has announced that the BRICS Summit will take place on 6–7 July in Rio de Janeiro. The information was published on the website of Brazil’s BRICS presidency. “It is a great pleasure to once again strengthen collaboration and partnership between the Federal Government and Rio de Janeiro. We will host Heads of State from the 20 countries that are part of the BRICS in the two categories of full members and partners. We will make…

Chinese President Xi Jinping on Saturday sent a message to the 38th African Union (AU) Summit, extending warm congratulations to African countries and people. Experts from African countries noted that the message highlights China’s unwavering commitment to China-Africa relations and its steadfast support for Africa’s independence, self-reliance and development. They said that China-Africa relations will continue to serve as a model of South-South cooperation, as the two sides work together on the path to modernization. STRONGER GLOBAL SOUTH COOPERATION In…

Irina Petrunina has been Director of the Department for Competition, Energy Efficiency, and Environment at the Russian Ministry of Economic Development since 2022. She graduated from the Moscow State Pedagogical Institute. She underwent retraining at the Russian Academy of Public Administration under the President of the Russian Federation. From 1991 to 2019, she held positions in education – from deputy school director to deputy director of the Department of State Policy in the sphere of upbringing, additional education and children’s…

Gertrude Nyathi walks calmly into Zimbabwe’s Mahusekwa Hospital for antenatal care in Mashonaland, where she is expected to give birth in the next five months.  In a country where medical facilities are obsolete, patients flock to seek medical care at the Chinese-aided hospital, seen by many as a game changer in Marondera district.   “Before this hospital was built, pregnant women had to travel long distances to go to Harare for antenatal services and some even gave birth on the way.…

In central Uganda’s Nakasongola District, 117 km from the capital, Kampala, a new era of sustainable bamboo farming is on the go.  China, a global leader in bamboo production, has partnered with the Ugandan government to promote bamboo farming in that area and the country at large. Bamboo farming, launched over a decade ago, has attracted a sizeable number of farmers throughout the country.  The biggest bamboo farm in the country is located in Nakasongola District and cover 500 acres…

US Secretary of State Marco Rubio says he won’t attend the G20 Summit in Johannesburg this year, accusing South Africa of “doing very bad things” and “anti-Americanism”. The new US top diplomat repeated President Donald Trump’s false claim that Pretoria was confiscating private property and violating human rights, indicating deteriorating relations between South Africa and the US over various foreign and domestic policy disagreements. South Africa’s policies on China, Russia, Ukraine and Israel are at the centre of the tension.The…

The BRICS Senior Officials National Technical Committee meeting was held at the Ethiopian Ministry of Foreign Affairs to discuss the group’s activities for 2025 under the Brazilian chairmanship. The meeting was chaired by Ambassador Minelik Alemu Getahun, Special Policy Advisor of the Foreign Minister, according to Fana Media Corporation (FMC), a partner of TV BRICS. During the meeting, Director General for International Organisations Affairs Lemlem Fiseha, gave a brief overview of Ethiopia’s achievements in 2024 and outlined the country’s prospects…

Brazil is committed to strengthening democracy, leading in the energy transition, and increasing investment attractiveness. This was stated by the country’s president, Luiz Inacio Lula da Silva, during a press conference at the Palacio do Planalto, as reported by the Brazilian government’s press service. The head of state emphasised the significance of the upcoming 2025 BRICS summit and the 30th Conference of the Parties to the United Nations Convention on Climate Change (COP30). “I am not being humble when I…

The Lomonosov Moscow State University hosted the International Scientific and Practical Conference titled “Russia, Brazil, and Africa: Strengthening Cooperation of the Global South”. The event, held in a hybrid format, brought together over 110 scholars from 25 countries. During the opening ceremony, Aleksander Berdnikov, Executive Secretary of the Russian-African Club at Moscow State University, highlighted the institution’s initiatives to preserve historical memory. As an example, he cited the installation of a monument in Moscow in 2024 dedicated to Nelson Mandela,…

The start of 2025 was a landmark period for BRICS: on 6 January, Indonesia joined the group as a full member. According to experts, this event was an important milestone in the history of BRICS: the group continues to strengthen its position in the international arena, united countries with great economic and demographic potential. What contribution can Indonesia make to BRICS and to the formation of a new global architecture? What advantages will it gain? BRICS countries’ reactions Indonesia was warmly welcomed by the BRICS…