Good morning, readers!

Remember when we last reported about the failed Russian lunar lander mission a few days ago? Just a heads up—India is also giving it a shot today at around 8:30 am EDT.

Will it succeed or fail like Russia’s Luna-25?

Watch here.

Today’s geopolitics hotspots:

Xi and Putin: skip the first day hand in hand

The long-anticipated BRICS summit in South Africa commenced on August 22, and it certainly did not disappoint—providing quite a few things to say about it.

Let’s just say, there was a whole lot of skipping:

1. Xi Jinping inexplicably skipped his speech.

2. Putin skipped the summit.

🇨🇳 Xi’s absence.

Xi was all set to take the stage at the business forum, but to everyone's surprise, he gave it a miss and sent his commerce minister, Wang Wentao, as his stand-in. The reason for this change of plans still remains a puzzle.

Here is the transcript of the speech.

🇷🇺 Putin’s absence.

Similar to Xi, Putin also opted to skip the business forum, but his excuse was slightly more compelling—avoiding an international arrest warrant issued by the International Criminal Court.

• Nonetheless, Putin made sure his presence was felt through a 17-minute pre-recorded speech of himself condemning the West’s "illegitimate sanctions" and the freezing of assets of sovereign nations.

• He also threatened to permanently sever Ukraine's grain exports, a move that could disrupt global food supply chains, potentially causing fluctuations in food prices and security.

🤝 Expansion.

Putin didn't stop there. He also proposed the idea of transforming the group into a trading bloc that represents the "global majority." In other words, expand the bloc to include more members.

Yet, this proposition didn’t sit too well with all BRICS members, as it could mean turning BRICS into a geopolitical opposition to the West.



Note: more than 40 nations are eagerly vying for a spot in the bloc.

🇧🇷 Differing views.

• For example, India’s PM Modi had previously expressed concerns about China’s expansion plans—fearing they would pack the bloc with anti-West nations.

• However, Brazil's President Luiz Inácio Lula da Silva assured that BRICS wasn't out to compete with the West.

• The White House also downplayed the odds of BRICS uniting as a formidable force. Its reasoning? The differences of view on critical issues among its members. Just look at India and China!

🤔 Why It Matters.

BRICS wields influence over 40% of the world's population and commands a quarter of the global GDP. Now imagine the potential consequences of this collective power transforming into a unified trading entity. It could reshape the landscape of global trade and geopolitics. This isn't just a fleeting episode; it's a pivotal moment with ramifications that stretch far and wide.

The summit is set to end on the 24th, so we will have more to share soon.

🌟 Today’s gem

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