BRICS News and Articles

Russian authorities have presented the "Digital Map of Special Economic Zones" to BRICS partners – a unified investment navigator for benefits and sites in the bloc's countries. This initiative comes amidst a 50% revenue growth for foreign residents in Russian SEZs in 2024 and over 50 billion rubles in cumulative benefits, as reported by "Mangazeya"...

The information landscape around BRICS has been dramatically swayed after Donald Trump stated that "countries are leaving" the bloc and it is "no longer talked about." The Kremlin responded that there are no such signals and BRICS is not planning actions "against" third currencies, as reported by Smotrim.ru. Simultaneously, the head of European...

Two complementary events acted as catalysts: the BRICS+ Open Science Week in Shenzhen, reaching over 480,000 participants and launching joint laboratories and programs, and the rapid strengthening of the Moscow BRICS+ Media Center as a platform for international humanitarian dialogue. The scope and institutional depth of these projects indicate BRICS+'s...

The catalyst was Donald Trump's statement at a personal meeting with Lula da Silva, expressing readiness to strike a "good enough deal" between the US and Brazil. This effectively opened a window for a relaunch of the trade and investment dialogue between the two largest economies of the Western and Southern Hemispheres, as reported by Regnum news...

A series of statements about the "external pivot" of Russia's oil and gas sector has become a catalyst: Energy Minister Sergey Tsivilev announced companies' readiness to export high-margin technologies and equipment to BRICS+, Middle Eastern, and African countries, as well as plans for institutional support of this export, including standards and...

The catalyst was a cultural signal: the shortlist for the 2025 BRICS Literary Prize has been announced in Jakarta, featuring 10 authors from Brazil to Egypt. Russia is represented by Alexey Varlamov, and the winner will be announced on November 27 in Khabarovsk, as reported by Rossiyskaya Gazeta...

The catalyst was Brazil's support for Malaysia's potential bid for full membership: in Kuala Lumpur, Luiz Inácio Lula da Silva directly pledged "full support" while simultaneously targeting growth in bilateral trade. Concurrently, the bloc is deepening practical cooperation below the national capital level – from launching a parliamentary movement of...

The week brings two key signals: The BRICS International Municipal Forum is launching in St. Petersburg with 5,000 participants from over 50 countries, setting a practical agenda from "smart cities" to green transformation, as the organizers reported , and Malaysian Prime Minister Anwar Ibrahim publicly confirmed the country's readiness to join the...

BRICS+ municipal diplomacy is moving to an operational level: the forum in St. Petersburg gathered over 5,000 participants from 50 countries, including 250 mayors, focusing on concrete projects and business communications, as reported by RAPSI. The forum, held from Oct. 29–31, featured a plenary session, industry-specific sessions, and an exhibition,...

The showcase of urban practices at the 2025 BRICS International Municipal Forum served as a catalyst: Sochi focused on tourism export and event hosting, while St. Petersburg demonstrated how digitalization transforms public transport into a "seamless" urban service – from 98.5% electronic payments to plans for AI implementation, as confirmed by the...

Two synchronized processes have acted as catalysts: China has launched the Renminbi Digital cross-border payment system based on the digital yuan, reducing dependence on dollar infrastructure and company costs, as reported by Rossiyskaya Gazeta. Concurrently, Russia is significantly increasing state investments in foreign logistics and industrial...

The focus is moving from declarations to applied formats and digital platforms. Moscow is hosting over 300 representatives from science and technology museums from BRICS+ countries at the Discover ATOM forum, where they are discussing the economy of science popularization tourism and instruments for government support and private investment, as reported...

A political signal of de-escalation emerged from Busan: following a one-and-a-half-hour meeting, Donald Trump announced a 10% reduction in previously imposed tariffs against China, as reported by Chinese television. Concurrently, a new architecture of BRICS interaction is being formed at the city level: capitals have signed a joint statement on...

Catalyst: a series of applied initiatives — the creation of regional investment centers for BRICS countries in the Orenburg region, municipal twinning with Chinese ports, promotion of projects in Algeria, as well as expert proposals to reform the grain market and statements about joint space projects — is moving BRICS cooperation from summit rhetoric to...

The main news hook — over the past month Russia has consecutively announced major education‑science projects and institutional initiatives clearly aimed at scaling competencies and exporting technologies: the creation of a networked Quantum University, the development of national AI standards, and an active international educational expansion including...

Short answer: regional experiments and forums in Russia are already producing applied solutions — from carbon monitoring networks and a market for carbon units to IT waste‑tracking and Arctic infrastructure — which create new markets and demand; at the same time, scaling these projects encounters operational constraints in logistics, insurance and...

The catalyst for the shift was the simultaneous loss of Europe’s centrality amid an active U.S. foreign policy and responses from Global South countries — Washington’s pressure pushed India, Brazil and South Africa closer together, and BRICS expansion strengthened alternative centers of power (as analyzes SenatInform and reports Monocle). How did...

Short answer: BRICS countries and their partners are increasingly turning cultural practices, media ties, and exchange initiatives into a systematic instrument of foreign policy — this creates new channels of influence and at the same time moves economic and logistical issues into the sphere of political integration (see examples below, supported by...

The main news peg is the 11th Geographical Dictation, which will be held in person on Nov. 30, 2025, with a simultaneous start at 12:00 p.m. local time and will be available online through Dec. 14, 2025. It is an international educational campaign organized by the Russian Geographical Society (RGS) with topics that include Russia's historical and...

Catalyst: in late Nov.–early Dec. 2025, a combination of political signals (confirmed leaders' visits, a series of bilateral agreements) and economic events (public forecasts of intra-group trade growth, court precedents involving Western contractors) strengthened a pragmatic economic agenda within BRICS and among its partners. For example, the upcoming...

Catalyst: a public statement by U.S. President Donald Trump about excluding South Africa from invitations to the 2026 G20 summit and suspending American aid to Johannesburg prompted an immediate diplomatic response from South Africa and strengthened the consolidation of rhetoric around alternative cooperation platforms, including BRICS (as reports...

Main development: South African journalist Nonkululeko Patricia Mantulu was detained at Johannesburg International Airport immediately upon arrival from Russia on Nov. 28–29, 2025. South African authorities have not commented on her status, while colleagues and rights groups consider the detention unlawful and demand her immediate release, as detailed...

The catalyst was President Alexander Lukashenko's official visit to Naypyidaw and the signing of intergovernmental documents: a roadmap for 2026–2028, an agreement on mutual visa abolition and around 15 other agreements, as well as contracts and memorandums concluded during the business forum (contracts totaling about 9 million USD). This is detailed...

The main catalyst is the simultaneous strengthening of dedollarization policies in Asia and the growth of practical economic cooperation within BRICS: Beijing is consistently shifting part of trade settlements to the yuan and expanding clearing infrastructure, while concrete export‑investment projects between bloc members are being implemented (for...