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☆ Russia, expansion and Western relations in the spotlight as leaders gather for pivotal BRICS summit
▼ + stars: | 2023-08-22 | by ( Elliot Smith | ) www.cnbc.com time to read: +9 min

South African police officers walk in front of an event banner outside the venue for the BRICS summit at the Sandton Convention Center in the Sandton district of Johannesburg, South Africa, on Monday, Aug. 21, 2023. Ramaphosa invited 67 leaders from across Africa, Latin America, the Middle East, Asia and the Caribbean to attend the summit, but no Western leaders received an invitation. watch nowBilateral deals and cooperation is common among BRICS members, but de Carvalho challenged the idea that there is a unanimous desire to compete with the G7. He added that the BRICS members do not always agree and do not see the group as a "panacea," but simply a "vehicle to become more influential in global discussions." "The G7 contains the rich Western economies, while BRICS contains the two most populous countries and the leading countries on three continents.

Persons: Michele Spatari, Cyril Ramaphosa, Xi Jinping, Luiz Inácio Lula da Silva, Narendra Modi, Sergei Lavrov, Vladimir Putin, Putin, Ramaphosa, Gustavo de Carvalho, de Carvalho, Lula, BRICS, It's, it's, Steven Gruzd, Gruzd Organizations: Bloomberg, Getty, West, South, Indian, Russian, International, Court, ICC, Western, African Union Commission, New Development Bank, South African Institute of International Affairs, CNBC Locations: Sandton, Johannesburg, South Africa, Ukraine, Africa, Latin America, East, Asia, Caribbean, Nigeria, Saudi Arabia, Iran, UAE, Argentina, Indonesia, Egypt, Ethiopia, Ghana, India, BRICS, Russia, Brazil, China

☆ BRICS expansion hopefuls seek to rebalance world order
▼ + stars: | 2023-08-21 | by ( Joe Bavier | ) www.reuters.com time to read: +6 min

[1/6] People walk past the Sandton Convention Centre, which will host the upcoming BRICS Summit, in Johannesburg, South Africa August 19, 2023. The wealthy West's domination of international bodies, such as the United Nations, the International Monetary Fund or the World Bank. DEVELOPING WORLD DISCONTENTWhile BRICS has not divulged a full list of expansion candidates, a number of governments have publicly stated their interest. Others want changes at the World Trade Organization, International Monetary Fund and World Bank. Its BRICS trade has indeed increased steadily since it joined, according to an analysis by the country's Industrial Development Corporation.

Persons: James Oatway, Rob Davies, South, bode, Vladimir Putin, Steven Gruzd, BRICS, Ramón Lobo, Gruzd, Lucinda Elliott, Deisy, Yousef Saba, Gustavo Palencia, Lamine Chikhi, Ahmed Eljechtimi, Tomasz Janowski Organizations: Sandton, REUTERS, United Nations, International Monetary Fund, World Bank, BRICS, Observers, South African Institute of International Affairs, U.S ., Reuters, United, Emirates, World Trade Organization, Argentine, New Development Bank, Russia, Industrial Development Corporation, South, Thomson Locations: Johannesburg, South Africa, JOHANNESBURG, Iran, Argentina, Brazil, Russia, India, China, Ukraine, Venezuela, Gulf, Saudi Arabia, Ethiopia, Nigeria, United Nations, United States, Montevideo, Caracas, Dubai, Tegucigalpa, Lamine, Algiers, Rabat

☆ South Africa’s stance on Russia puzzles many. Could a mine in the desert hold answers?
▼ + stars: | 2023-07-28 | by ( David Mckenzie | ) edition.cnn.com time to read: +10 min

Johannesburg, South Africa CNN —To many observers, South Africa’s stance on Russia’s war in Ukraine is puzzling. This week, while many African leaders stay away, South African President Cyril Ramaphosa is attending a Russia-Africa summit in St. Petersburg along with key ministers. So, why is South Africa putting this important relationship at risk? The US had long treated South Africa with kid gloves, he said, mindful of not risking an important relationship. Officials have denied that anything was loaded up, but the claim is now subject to a sealed South African government inquiry.

Persons: South Africa CNN —, Cyril Ramaphosa, Viktor Vekselberg, Vladimir Putin, Byron Blunt, Chancellor House, Mogopodi Mokoena, Mokoena, UMK, ”, Karam Singh, Steven Gruzd, Reuben Brigety II, Brigety, Mikhail Metzel, Chancellor House’s, Putin, Yuri Trutnev, Konstantin Zavrazhin, Vekselberg, “, “ Mr Organizations: South Africa CNN, Russia, United Nations, Russian Navy, National Congress, Soviet Union, AmaBhungane, Investigative Journalism, CNN, Chancellor House Holdings, ANC, Mail & Guardian, Chancellor House, Corruption Watch, Chancellor, South African Institute of International Affairs, US, South, AP Mokoena, International Criminal Court, ICC, Getty, Treasury, FBI, Renova Group Locations: Johannesburg, South Africa, Ukraine, Africa, United States, Russian, Russia, St . Petersburg, States, St, Petersburg, Cape Town, African, Cape Town , South Africa, Mallorca, UMK, Cyprus, South

☆ BRICS ministers meet in push to establish group as counterweight to West
▼ + stars: | 2023-06-01 | by ( Wendell Roelf | ) www.reuters.com time to read: +3 min

South African authorities confirmed that foreign ministers from Brazil, Russia, India, and South Africa are attending Thursday's meeting in Cape Town. Amid the growing geopolitical polarisation resulting from the war in Ukraine, BRICS leaders have said they are open to admitting new members, including oil producing countries. South Africa, though the bloc's smallest member, is among its biggest champions. As an ICC member South Africa would face pressure to arrest Putin, were he to attend the meeting in Johannesburg. "Obviously, the best solution for South Africa is if Putin decided not to come."

Persons: Vladimir Putin, Putin, van Staden, William Gumede, Nic Borain, Wendell Roelf, Carien du, Joe Bavier, Grant McCool Organizations: BRICS, Criminal Court, South African Institute of International Affairs, New Development Bank, South, United, ICC, Independent, Thomson Locations: Ukraine, August CAPE, South Africa, Johannesburg, Moscow, Brazil, Russia, India, Cape Town, China, Beijing, South African, Venezuela, Argentina, Iran, Algeria, Saudi Arabia, United Arab Emirates, African, . South Africa, Africa, Pretoria, Carien du Plessis

☆ South Africa Allowed Russian Plane Under U.S. Sanctions to Land at Base
▼ + stars: | 2023-05-04 | by ( Lynsey Chutel | John Eligon | ) www.nytimes.com time to read: +1 min

JOHANNESBURG — South African officials allowed a cargo plane targeted by U.S. sanctions for supporting Russia’s military efforts to land at an air force base near the capital, Pretoria, last week, a move that could further increase tensions with the United States. U.S. officials previously said the plane has been known to ship weapons for Russia’s defense forces. South Africa’s Department of Defense said in a statement on Wednesday that the plane had been delivering diplomatic mail for the Russian Embassy. South African officials have declined to say precisely what was loaded on to and taken off the plane. South Africa’s decision to let the aircraft land runs counter to American efforts to isolate Russia because of its invasion of Ukraine.

☆ South Africa's naval exercise with Russia, China raises Western alarm
▼ + stars: | 2023-02-17 | by ( Carien Du Plessis | ) www.reuters.com time to read: +5 min

"These exercises are going to be a lightning rod," said Steven Gruzd, of the South African Institute of International Affairs. "South Africa, like any independent and sovereign state, has a right to conduct its foreign relations in line with its ... national interests," South Africa's defence ministry said last month. Russia's defence ministry did not respond to a request for comment, and South Africa's National Defence Force has denied the TASS report. China is now Africa's top bilateral trading partner, but the EU is by far the largest market for South African exports. Domestic critics of South Africa's push to deepen ties with Russia and China say that economic reality alone should be enough to give the government serious pause.

[1/4] U.S. Treasury Secretary Janet Yellen and South Africa's Finance Minister Enoch Godongwana attend bilateral talks, at the treasury offices in Pretoria, South Africa, January 26, 2023. Nevertheless Lavrov made a stopover after visiting South Africa, which his counterpart Thulisile Dladla described as a "profound honour." Eswatini relies on the United States for aid, but its absolute monarchy has suffered U.S. criticism on human rights. South Africa, alongside Russia and China, is pushing for a "multipolar" world in which geopolitical power is less concentrated around the United States. "It hasn't delivered the kind of benefits South Africa was hoping to get."

☆ Russia, South Africa and a 'redesigned global order': The Kremlin's hearts and minds machine is steaming ahead
▼ + stars: | 2023-01-26 | by ( Elliot Smith | ) www.cnbc.com time to read: +9 min

Russian Foreign Minister Sergei Lavrov visited Pretoria as part of an African tour, his second since the invasion, which will also reportedly take him to Botswana, Angola and Eswatini. On Feb. 24 2022, shortly after the Ukraine invasion, South Africa urged Russia to immediately withdraw its forces from Ukraine. South Africa was one of 15 African nations to abstain from the subsequent U.N. vote in March to condemn Russia's war of aggression. watch nowShe emphasized the multilateral responsibilities of the BRICS (Brazil, Russia, India, China and South Africa) bloc of leading emerging economies in a changing global landscape. White House Press Secretary Karine Jean-Pierre said Monday that "the United States has concerns about any country … exercising with Russia as Russia wages a brutal war against Ukraine."

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