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BRICS Plus, FOCAC And The Battle For The Global South

A media conference was held in Russia during the weekend of September 14-15 as a precursor to the upcoming Brazil, Russia, India, China and South Africa Plus Summit to be held in October. This gathering of journalists, editors, publishers and other media workers represented efforts to create a narrative that provides an alternative to the news reports and analyses that dominate western media outlets and their surrogates in the Global South. The media conference was hosted by the Russian state news agency, TASS, which on September 1, celebrated its 120th anniversary. TASS and many of the other media agencies visiting Russia for the conference are presenting different views on world events than what is routinely highlighted by the corporate and governmental networks in the United States, Britain and the European Union (EU).

Defending Humanity

Anyone taking up the question of our shared humanity in the late summer of 2024 must begin with mention of the Gaza crisis, or — with the escalating violence in the West Bank — the wider Palestine crisis. These events are of world-historical magnitude. They challenge any idea of humanity we may have until now held as truths held to be self-evident, as we Americans would say. That seems to be over now. It is as if an era in the human story has ended, and we enter upon one that requires us to think again, maybe for the first time since the 1945 victories, when those who came before us looked back upon the wreckage of the 1930s and 1940s and asked, “Where is our humanity?”

Trump Threatens To Punish De-Dollarization

Countries across the planet are seeking alternatives to the US-dominated financial system. However, former President Donald Trump has pledged that, if he returns to the White House, he will punish nations that de-dollarize. “We will keep the US dollar as the world’s reserve currency”, Trump promised at a campaign rally in Mosinee, Wisconsin on September 7, 2024. “It is currently under major siege. Many countries are leaving the dollar”, the Republican presidential candidate lamented. “They’re not going to leave the dollar with me”, Trump insisted. “I’ll say, ‘You leave the dollar, you’re not doing business with the United States, because we’re going to put 100% tariff on your goods'”.

Lavrov At United Nations On Avoiding WWIII

“Let’s face it: not all countries represented in this chamber recognise the key principle of the U.N. Charter which is the sovereign equality of all states,” Russian Foreign Minister Sergei Lavrov told U.N. Security Council on Tuesday. “Speaking through its presidents, the United States has long declared its exceptionalism. This applies to Washington’s attitude towards its allies, whom it demands to be unquestioningly obedient even to the detriment of their national interests. Rule, America! This is the thrust of the notorious ‘rules-based order’ which presents a direct threat to multilateralism and international peace.”

Why The SCO Summit In Kazakhstan Was A Game-Changer

Let’s start with the final declaration. As much as SCO members state “tectonic shifts are underway” in geopolitics and geoeconomics, as “the use of power methods is increasing, with norms of international law being systematically violated”, they are fully engaged to “increase the SCO’s role in the creation of a new democratic, fair, political and economic international order.” Well, there could not be a sharper contrast with the unilaterally-imposed “rules-based international order”. The SCO 10 – with new member Belarus – are explicitly in favor of “a fair solution to the Palestinian issue”. They “oppose unilateral sanctions”.

Is The Reign Of The Dollar Coming To An End?

In early June, a rumour began to circulate – which was widely reported in the Indian press as true – that the government of Saudi Arabia had allowed its petrodollar agreement with the United States to lapse. This agreement, made in 1974, is quite straight-forward and fulfils various needs of the US government: the US purchases oil from Saudi Arabia, and Saudi Arabia uses that money to buy military equipment from US arms manufacturers while holding the income from the oil sales in US Treasury Bills and in the Western financial system. This arrangement to recycle oil profits into the US economy and the Western banking world is known as the petrodollar system.

Competing Global Economic Initiatives: A Tale Of Two Routes

In recent years, two major economic initiatives have emerged in Asia, particularly in West Asia: China’s Belt and Road Initiative (BRI) and the India-Middle East-Europe Economic Corridor (IMEC). These initiatives represent a strategic contest between global powers vying for influence and economic dominance in a rapidly changing world. The Belt and Road Initiative, conceived by Chinese President Xi Jinping, is a modern resurrection of the ancient Silk Road. This initiative aims to connect China to the rest of the world through extensive infrastructure investments, including ports, roads, railways, and industrial zones.

Global South Countries Break With West On Ukraine Summit Declaration

Key Global South countries attending the Ukraine “peace” conference in Switzerland this past weekend refused to sign the joint communique issued at the end of the two-day summit. Many of them underlined the need for Russian participation in any such initiatives for them to be credible. Countries such as Indonesia, Thailand, Mexico, and BRICS members, India, South Africa, Brazil, Saudi Arabia, the United Arab Emirates (UAE) did not agree to what was outlined in the communique despite participating in the summit over the weekend. Russia, which was not invited to join the summit, had already rejected the outcome and questioned the basis of the summit. President Vladimir Putin had also called the summit an attempt by the West to distract the world’s attention away from the root causes of the conflict.

Democracy Will Not Come Through Compromise And Fear

Half of the world’s population will have the opportunity to vote by the end of this year as 64 countries and the European Union are scheduled to open their ballot boxes. No previous year has been so flush with elections. Among these countries is India, where a remarkable 969 million voting papers had to be printed ahead of the elections that culminated on 1 June. In the end, 642 million people (roughly two-thirds of those eligible) voted, half of them women. This is the highest-ever participation by women voters in a single election in the world. Meanwhile, the European Union’s 27 member states held elections for the European Parliament, which meant that 373 million eligible voters had the opportunity to cast their ballot for the 720 members who make up the legislative body.

The Three Key Messages From St. Petersburg To The Global Majority

President Putin, a “European Russian” and true son of this dazzling, dynamic historic marvel by the Neva, delivered an  extremely detailed one-hour speech on the Russian economy at the forum’s plenary session. The key takeaway: as the collective West launched total economic war against Russia, the civilization-state turned it around and positioned itself as the world’s 4th largest economy by purchasing power parity (PPP). Putin showed how Russia still carries the potential to launch no less than nine sweeping – global – structural changes, an all-out drive involving the federal, regional, and municipal spheres.

Lavrov Opens BRICS Meeting In Russia, First After New Members Joined

Russia’s Foreign Minister Sergey Lavrov opened the two-day BRICS foreign ministers’ meeting as its chair in the Russian city of Nizhny Novgorod from June 10 to 11. Among those attending are: China’s Minister of Foreign Affairs Wang Yi, South Africa’s Minister of International Relations and Cooperation Dr. Naledi Pandor, Egypt’s Minister of Foreign Affairs Sameh Shoukry, and Brazil’s Minister of Foreign Affairs Mauro Vieira, while Turkey’s Foreign Minister Hakan Fidan is attending in the extended format of the meeting. This marks the first after the bloc was joined by new members – Egypt, Ethiopia, Iran, Saudi Arabia, and the United Arab Emirates, as its original members are Russia, China, India, Brazil, and South Africa.

China And Russia Strengthen Friendship, Blast Western ‘Neocolonialism’ And Militarism

As the United States imposes more and more sanctions on China and Russia, this has only driven the Eurasian powers closer together. The leaders of the two countries convened in Beijing in May. It was their 43rd meeting. There, Presidents Xi Jinping and Vladimir Putin signed a joint statement commemorating the 75th anniversary of diplomatic relations. In the document, China and Russia blasted Western “colonialism and hegemonism”, called to build a more multipolar world with increased representation for the Global South, and expressed support for de-dollarization and expansion of BRICS.

Iran’s President Raisi Joined BRICS, Pushed For Multipolar World

Iran’s President Ebrahim Raisi, who died in a helicopter crash on May 19, left behind a legacy of working to build a more multipolar world. Under Raisi, Iran joined BRICS and the Shanghai Cooperation Organization, Global South-led institutions that he noted could challenge US unilateralism and hegemony. The late Iranian leader advocated a “Look East” strategy, strengthening relations with China, Russia, and other countries in Asia. Raisi represented a more nationalist wing of the political class in Tehran, which sees the futility of trying to win Western approval, and instead recognizes that Iran’s political and economic future lies in deepening integration with the Global South.

The Sahel’s ‘Axis Of Resistance’

The emergence of in various geographies is an inextricable byproduct of the long and winding process leading us toward a multipolar world. These two things – resistance to the Hegemon and the emergence of multipolarity – are absolutely complementary. The Axis of Resistance in West Asia – across Arab and Muslim states – now finds as its soul sister the Axis of Resistance spanning the Sahel in Africa, west to east, from Senegal, Mali, Burkina Faso, and Niger to Chad, Sudan, and Eritrea. Unlike Niger, where the change in power against neocolonialism was associated with a military coup, in Senegal, the power change comes straight from the polls.

South Africa Demands Genocide Protests

South Africa’s foreign minister has called for protests outside the embassies of countries supporting Israel. Naledi Pandor is urging people to make posters with the banner ‘stop genocide’ and says it’s time to ‘stand up and be visible.’ She made the demand at last week’s ANC dialogue on Palestine and says her country’s tough stance is about fighting racism, colonialism, occupation and upholding the UN Charter. Pretoria has taken Israel to the UN’s top court over its bombardment of Gaza that’s killed over 31,000 Palestinians.
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