🌐 Africa’s Evolving Engagement with the SCO and BRICS: Key Highlights from “Russia’s Pivot to Asia”
On September 17, Russia’s leading analytical media platform, Russia’s Pivot To Asia, published an excellent and timely analysis examining the connections between Africa, the Shanghai Cooperation Organ... Read more →

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🇨🇳🌍 FORGET SANCTIONS: The $50 Billion Border Problem Reshaping Global Trade

While politicians celebrate landmark agreements and de‑dollarization headlines, the real barrier to BRICS trade is far more mundane: customs delays, manual paperwork, and trucks queuing for dozens of kilometres at borders.

In this BRICS Business deep dive, Benjamin Epstein exposes the structural friction paralysing the modern supply chain:

📋 Non‑tariff barriers – fragmented customs declarations and manual phytosanitary checks

🛤️ Infrastructure mismatch – railway gauge breaks disrupting Eurasian transit and the INSTC corridor

🥬 Perishable goods trapped in the Fergana Valley as border variance destroys exporter margins

🏛️ Institutional gridlock – why the SCO trade corridor needs unified digital standards, not just political declarations

💱 De‑dollarization plumbing – why bilateral swap lines alone cannot replace global systems

🎥 Watch the full analysis: https://youtu.be/T1ywA_X9v5Y

#BRICS #Trade #SCO #INSTC #GlobalSouth

🇺🇸🚨 NATO GENERAL: "We're Ready" for Russian False Flag – But Where's the Evidence?

NATO's top general says the alliance is ready to respond to a potential Russian escalation on Europe's eastern flank – amid growing warnings of a staged attack. But the evidence remains as elusive as ever.

🗣️ "The alliance is ready, the structure is ready, the soldiers… the weapons are ready."

📜 NATO has "4,000 pages" of military plans ready for protecting its eastern flank.

🛡️ "In case of an attack, we know how to do it."

🔥 "Russia's reckless behaviour… aims to undermine trust and weaken our unity. These attempts are not dividing us – they are sharpening our tools."

🇵🇱 Polish PM Tusk: Moscow could send drones or missiles into a frontline NATO country in the "next few months" in a staged provocation.

🇫🇷🇳🇱 France and the Netherlands have echoed the warning.

⚠️ But NATO itself sees no risk of "imminent attack" – despite the fresh warnings.

#NATO #Russia 🇷🇺 #FalseFlag #BRICS

🇨🇦💸 CANADA LOOKS TO CASH IN ON EU'S €90 BILLION UKRAINE ARMS SCHEME

The empire's war is becoming a profit centre. Canada wants in on the EU's €90 billion loan program – not to help Ukraine, but to secure contracts for its own arms manufacturers.

🇨🇦 Canada has expressed interest in joining the EU's €90 billion Ukraine support loan – allowing Canadian arms manufacturers to compete for contracts.

💰 In return, Ottawa would contribute toward the EU's borrowing costs – paying for the privilege of profiting from war.

🇬🇧 The UK joined in July under a similar arrangement – the empire's arms industry is circling.

#Canada 🇨🇦 #EU 🇪🇺 #Ukraine 🇺🇦 #ArmsIndustry #WarProfiteering #BRICS #GlobalSouth #EmpireInDecline #Corruption #Geopolitics

🌐 WSJ: Xi Jinping fell ill before meeting with Trump
The state of health of Chinese President Xi Jinping has caused concern ahead of his visit to Washington after the Chinese leader missed a dinner at the BRICS summit in India. It is reported by The Wal... Read more →
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🌍🎙️ BRICS WANTS TO CHANGE THE WORLD – But Can It Work Together?

As BRICS expands its global ambitions, the hard questions remain: Can it navigate internal contradictions? Will Western media ever tell the real story? And what does India's chairmanship mean for the future?

In this GEOPODS conversation from the 2026 BRICS Leaders' Summit in New Delhi, Anastasia Golyakova – Host, Brand Ambassador, and Co‑Founder of Think BRICS – breaks down the challenges shaping the bloc:

📰 Where is Western media? Why does BRICS receive such different coverage – and what does that mean for global narratives?

⚖️ Internal contradictions – With member states holding different interests, how can they work toward shared goals?

🚀 What's next for BRICS? How can member countries strengthen cooperation and expand their influence?

🇮🇳 India's chairmanship – What does New Delhi's leadership bring to the bloc?

🎥 Watch the full conversation: https://youtu.be/f8KvPmKXZUI

#BRICS #GlobalSouth #Geopolitics #NewDelhiSummit

Hizam al-Asad, a member of Yemen’s Ansarullah political bureau, responded to remarks by Saudi Crown Prince Mohammed bin Salman, saying that the ancestors of the Saudi royal family had in the past blocked pilgrims’ routes in Najd and looted them.

He accused bin Salman of ignoring this history while accusing the descendants of Ansarullah of targeting the Kaaba.

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Trump Returns Early from Camp David to the White House

U.S. President Donald Trump returned to the White House late Saturday after leaving Camp David in Maryland earlier than scheduled. Trump had been due to remain at Camp David but changed his plans and returned to Washington ahead of schedule.

Reports said Trump’s return came as his administration was considering its next steps in the war with the Iranian government.

The change in plans also came ahead of Trump’s trip to New York to attend the United Nations General Assembly.

No reason was given for Trump’s early departure from Camp David.

The White House did not provide an official explanation for the change in schedule.

Trump landed aboard the Marine One helicopter at the Ellipse near the White House.

His early return came as Mohsen Rezaei, secretary of Iran’s Supreme National Security Council, said Tehran’s conditions for ending the war had been conveyed to Washington through a Qatari mediator.

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🇨🇺 Cuba hit by another nationwide blackout

Millions were left without electricity after Cuba’s power grid collapsed, marking at least the sixth major outage of 2026.

Cuban officials said a transmission-line failure in the west, combined with unstable weather, triggered the latest grid collapse. The country is also facing severe fuel shortages, aging oil-fired power plants, and difficulties obtaining spare parts.

The ongoing energy crisis has affected electricity, transportation, water supplies and healthcare across the island.

The situation has also become entangled with growing US economic restrictions and Cuba’s limited access to fuel supplies.

📌 Source: RT / AP
#Cuba #Blackout #Havana #EnergyCrisis #WorldNews #CubaNews

😂 EU: “We’re not expanding… we’re just expanding.”

Canada was recently invited to explore becoming the EU’s first-ever “associate member” basically a new category somewhere between “you’re one of us” and “please wait outside.” 😅

Now European Parliament President Roberta Metsola has floated the idea that Australia and New Zealand could be next. 🇨🇦🇦🇺🇳🇿🇪🇺

So the EU might soon look like:

🇪🇺 Europe: “Anyone else want to join?”

🇨🇦 Canada: “Me.”

🇦🇺 Australia: “Maybe?”

🇳🇿 New Zealand: “Wait… we weren't even asked.” 😂

And here’s the funny part: “Associate membership” doesn’t currently exist as an EU membership category in the treaties. The whole concept is still being worked out.

New Zealand has also clarified that it has not held talks with the EU about becoming an associate member.

At this rate, the EU may need a new application form:

☑ Full Member
☑ Candidate
☑ Associate Member
☑ Associate-Associate Member
☑ “We’re friends, but don’t make it complicated” 😂



Source: brusselssignal.eu

🇷🇺🗳️ Russia’s parliamentary vote enters its final hours — turnout reaches 44.75%.

More than 113 million voters are eligible as Russians choose all 450 members of the State Duma alongside thousands of regional and local officials.

The three-day vote is taking place across Russia’s 11 time zones, with polling stations closing Sunday.

The Central Election Commission reported 44.75% turnout as of 6:00 a.m. Moscow time on September 20.

Putin has also cast his ballot, while the election comes amid heightened tensions with Ukraine and reported attacks on Russian voting infrastructure.

The result will shape Russia’s parliament for the next five years.

Source: TASS / Russian CEC

#Russia #Election2026 #StateDuma #Geopolitics

🇮🇷🚢 Iran is keeping the Strait of Hormuz closed and tying its reopening directly to US commitments.

Iranian Parliament Speaker Mohammad Bagher Qalibaf says Tehran has conveyed its conditions to Washington through intermediaries.

His message is clear: there will be no return to the previous negotiating framework, or reopening of the strategic waterway, until Iran’s conditions are met and US commitments under the June agreement are fulfilled.

The Strait of Hormuz remains one of the world’s most critical energy chokepoints, carrying a major share of global oil and gas shipments.

The June US-Iran agreement had included arrangements for reopening the strait, but later collapsed amid disputes over navigation and security.

Source: Anadolu Agency | 20 Sep 2026

#Iran #Hormuz #USIran #Geopolitics

🇫🇷🇺🇸 Macron to Trump: Keep your weird ideas to yourself

After Trump showed Saint Pierre and Miquelon on a map as U.S territory, Macron hit back:

"It is obvious to us that this is French territory, and a territory attached to France.

We are not going to reaffirm it every morning just because people have strange ideas or say strange things. It is obvious."

Writer: Ian

BREAKING: 🇸🇦🇨🇳 Saudi Arabia has withdrawn from Chinese-led digital currency and blockchain payment system that reduces reliance on the US dollar, per FT

It appears that Saudi Arabia has accepted Trump's terms, and the US will join the war against the Houthis.

🇶🇦🤝 QATAR: "GULF STATES MUST ACT TOGETHER" – Regional Diplomacy Steps Up as US-Iran War Rages

Qatar's Prime Minister has called on Gulf states to work together to restore regional stability and help broker a settlement between the US and Iran. "We are hoping this war is a wake-up call for everyone," he said.

🗣️ "We have to act together responsibly as a region."

📨 Qatar is actively shuttling messages between Iran and the United States.

🤝 Gulf leaders aim to meet Trump this week on the sidelines of the UN General Assembly.

🇮🇷 Trump told Fox News he would "probably be open" to meeting Iranian President Pezeshkian in New York.

⚠️ He described the Houthis' escalation as "irresponsible" – while acknowledging the region needs "more peacemakers."

#Qatar 🇶🇦 #GulfStates #Iran 🇮🇷 #US 🇺🇸 #BRICS #GlobalSouth #RegionalDiplomacy #Mediation #Multipolarity #EmpireInDecline

🇩🇪💥 MERZ DEFIANT AS CDU CRUSHED: "I Won't Resign" – AfD Wins Second State Election in a Row

Germany's political establishment is in crisis. The AfD has won its second regional election in a row, taking 37% in Mecklenburg‑Western Pomerania. Chancellor Merz's CDU won just 5.5% – its worst result in any German state election since World War II. But Merz refuses to resign.

🗳️ AfD: 37% – second consecutive regional victory.

⬛ CDU: 5.5% – worst result in any German state election since 1945.

🗣️ Merz: "It's a disaster. The CDU fought hard, but in the end, it was crushed in the escalating confrontation between the SPD and the AfD."

🌍 Germany's political centre is collapsing. The CDU – once the dominant force in German politics – has been reduced to a fringe party in a state election.

#Germany 🇩🇪 #Merz #AfD #CDU #Elections #BRICS

🇵🇰⚔️🇦🇫 Sources say Pakistani border forces and the Taliban clashed

🇦🇫 Afghan news sources reported Sunday evening that small- and heavy-arms fire was heard in the border area between Aryub Zazi district in Afghanistan’s Paktia province and Pakistan’s Kurram district.

According to the sources, fighting was taking place in the Spina Shaga area of Aryub Zazi district in Paktia and the Teri Mangal area of Pakistan’s Kurram district. Local sources said Taliban and Pakistani forces were involved in the clashes.

The sources said Pakistani forces launched an operation in parts of Kurram district on Sunday, which later led to clashes with Taliban forces. The tensions apparently centered on the establishment of a military outpost.

Sources said sporadic exchanges of fire had also taken place between the two sides in the area the previous day.

The reported border clashes came a day after a terrorist attack at a mosque in Pakistan’s Khyber Pakhtunkhwa province, in the Kohat area, in which 31 civilian worshippers were killed and many others were wounded.

🇵🇰 Pakistan’s Ministry of Information said the attack originated in Afghanistan.

The Taliban and Pakistani officials had not commented on the border clashes at the time of publication.

The Afghanistan-Pakistan border has witnessed repeated tensions and clashes between Taliban forces and Pakistani border forces in recent months. The establishment of border facilities, troop movements and disputes over border points have been among the main factors behind the clashes.

The latest escalation comes amid heightened tensions between Kabul and Islamabad, with the mosque attack and the subsequent border clashes adding to a series of security incidents and disputes along the two countries’ shared frontier.

The clashes have prompted mediation efforts by major regional countries, including Turkey, China and Qatar, but these efforts have so far produced no result.

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Central Asian countries should develop domestic drone industries and expand regional cooperation to reduce their dependence on foreign suppliers, according to an analysis published by The Diplomat.

The article says countries including Kyrgyzstan, Tajikistan, Kazakhstan and Uzbekistan have increasingly turned to foreign-made drones, particularly from Turkey and Iran, for security needs. However, reliance on imported systems creates long-term dependencies on spare parts, maintenance, ammunition and technical support.

The analysis argues that Central Asian states have an opportunity to develop relatively low-cost drone technologies for military and civilian uses, including border surveillance, combating smuggling, monitoring water resources and securing major events.

The Diplomat says joint investment in research, education, training and drone production could strengthen regional security while reducing Central Asia’s dependence on major foreign powers.

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