Month: March 2024

Presidential elections in Russia were held from 15 to 17 March. The turnout across the country was 77,44 per cent. Vladimir Putin, according to official data, received 87,28 per cent of the votes.

Iranian President Ebrahim Raisi was one of the first to recognise the success of the Russian politician. In his message, he congratulated him on his convincing victory in the elections and expressed satisfaction with the trend in the development of relations between the two countries.

Chinese President Xi Jinping sent Vladimir Putin a congratulatory telegram. “Your re-election fully shows that you are supported by the Russian people,” it stated.

South African President Cyril Ramaphosa also expressed his best wishes to the Russian leader on his re-election. He recalled South Africa’s commitment to co-operation with Russia in multilateral platforms, including the UN, G20, BRICS and others.

Indian Prime Minister Narendra Modi conveyed “warm congratulations to Vladimir Putin on his re-election as President of Russia”. He said he looked forward to working together to further strengthen the strategic partnership between the two countries.

Brazilian leader Luiz Inacio Lula da Silva sent a letter to Vladimir Putin congratulating him on his victory in this year’s presidential election.

Saudi Arabia’s King Salman bin Abdulaziz Al Saud and Crown Prince Mohammed bin Salman Al Saud also congratulated the president-elect and expressed “best wishes for success, prosperity, further progress.” Later, Vladimir Putin had a telephone conversation with Mohammed bin Salman Al Saud. The parties reaffirmed their readiness to further actively develop ties between the states and mutually beneficial cooperation.

Abdel Fattah al-Sisi, President of Egypt, praised the historical ties between his country and Russia. President of the United Arab Emirates Mohamed bin Zayed Al Nahyan wished the Russian President further success at the highest state post. The Emirati leader thanked his colleague for the attention paid to strengthening relations between the countries.

Also, the heads of Venezuela, Nicaragua, Myanmar, Vietnam, Algeria, Mali and other countries sent congratulations to Vladimir Putin.

 

Source: TV BRICS

 

Russian President Vladimir Putin asked the Chairman of the Board of the Eurasian Economic Commission (EEC) Bakytzhan Sagintaev to work out the possibilities of cooperation between the EAEU countries and the BRICS member states.

 

Russian President said:

“Russia is chairing the BRICS this year. Our other countries are not members of this association, but the opportunities there are great, I mean also the plans of our Chinese friends, One Belt, One Road. BRICS leaders will come to Kazan, and I have a big request to you to see and work with Russian colleagues on how we could include the economies of other countries of our association in joint work with the BRICS countries”

 

Vladimir Putin pointed out that one of the promising areas of joint work of the associations could be the creation of a system of settlements in national currencies. In addition, the Russian leader recalled the creation of the BRICS Bank, whose functionality could also be expanded.

 

The President added.

“It would be great if we offered our colleagues some things on behalf of Russia, but taking into account the interests of the member countries of our organisation. Because any steps in these areas, of course, we seek to coordinate with all members of the Eurasian Economic Community and, accordingly, of course, with your position, with the position of the Commission, we could prepare joint proposals”

 

Source: Kremlin & TV BRICS

 

President Cyril Ramaphosa of South Africa recalled the strong economic ties between the two countries during the 2nd session of the South African-Ghana Bi-National Commission as reported by Pretoria News.

South Africa According to him is the largest importer of Ghana’s products in Africa and third compared to all other countries in the world.

“South Africa and Ghana have untapped economic potential and much more needs to be done, both with regards to growth of total trade and the diversification of products to high-value manufactured exports” He welcomed delegates from the second side led by Ghana’s President Nana Akufo-Addo.

South African delegates representing over 150 companies and their Ghanaian counterparts from 78 companies in discussion groups agreed that the inability of African businessmen to trade directly and cost-effectively using national currencies needs to be addressed.

Source: Pretoria News & TV BRICS

The United Nations Development Programme (UNDP) has launched the Insurance and Risk Financing Facility (IRFF) in Ethiopia. This is reported by ENA. IRFF will help the African nation build the capacity of businesses, communities and individual entrepreneurs through accessible, affordable and innovative insurance products.

UNDP Ethiopia Resident Representative, Samuel Doe said the launch of an insurance and risk financing programme in the country is necessary for the development of the economy. He added that Ethiopia is vulnerable to various natural and man-made hazards.

The publication said the insurance and risk financing programme will also be useful to the National Bank of Ethiopia in setting up a dedicated insurance supervisory body that will act as an independent regulator.

source: ENA & TV BRICS

Luiz Inacio Lula da Silva(Brazilian President) ordered to change the composition of the basic food basket and to implement the “Solidarity Kitchen” programme, which will provide free meals to people living on the streets and in difficult situations. The relevant decrees were signed at a plenary meeting of the National Council for Food and Nutritional Security (Consea).

“We must realise that the problem is not a lack of food, but a lack of resources that allow people to have access to it,” Lula da Silva said.

The president said that fighting hunger is a priority for the country’s leadership. According to the government, the new composition of the basic food basket is in line with the recommendations and principles of the Ministry of Health’s guidelines. It now includes more natural and minimally heat-treated foods.

The Solidarity Kitchen programme is coordinated by Brazil’s Ministry of Social Development and Fight Against Hunger (MDS) and has been in operation since July 2023. The office has already mapped 2,770 kitchens across the country, which work through collaboration between different entities related to family farming, food procurement and others.

source: Toda Palavra & TV BRICS

Starting March 20, about US$6 billion will be allocated for construction and infrastructure projects, the head of Iran’s Planning and Budget Organisation (PBO) Davoud Manzour said. The government has managed to fulfil almost all the targets set in the current year’s national budget bill.

In late December 2023, the Iranian parliament approved the general provisions of the national budget bill for the next 1403 Iranian calendar year. The proposed budget is about US$1,2 trillion, which is 18 per cent higher than the current year’s budget.

Oil sales are projected and sales are estimated at 1.35 million barrels per day at an average price of US$70. Like the current year’s budget, the proposed budget for next year requires the government to pay 40 per cent of oil, gas and gas condensate revenues to the National Development Fund (NDF).

The figures presented in next year’s budget bill indicate that the government is taking major steps to distance the economy from oil, as most of the revenue will come from other sources.

source: Tehran Times & TV BRICS