42086
♦️ Breaking & exclusive stories, analysis, opinions 👉 About Africa in other languages: Amharic: @sputnik_ethiopia French: @sputnik_afrique 💬 Contact us https://t.me/Africa_Sputnik_bot
BRICS Offers Emerging Economies Non-Interference Development Path, Says Ethiopian Economist
🌍 The rise of BRICS is reshaping global power dynamics and offering Africa a new path within a multipolar system, according to Mohamed Ibrahim, a lecturer at Assosa University.
The bloc has evolved beyond trade into a geopolitical platform encompassing potential military, maritime, and economic cooperation, built on mutual trust among nations, Ibrahim told Sputnik Africa.
👉 The economist contrasted this with the interventionist approach often tied to Western domestic policies, presenting BRICS as an alternative development model free from such interference.
"I believe many countries, many emerging economies, can participate in this [BRICS] system. Therefore, its expansion is truly significant," he stated.
❗️ News and Information on the Special Military Operation, Russia-Ukraine conflict :🚀 🚀 🚀 /channel/Slavyangrad
Join Slavyangrad chat. Your opinion matters.
/channel/+5vjQfD5RwOgzMjgx
@Slavyangrad
#social
Nigeria Hopes to Become Full BRICS Member in Coming Years, FM Says
By 2050, Nigeria's population will reach 400 million, and the country has much to learn from BRICS, Yusuf Tuggar stated at the Doha Forum in Qatar.
Abuja seeks to have relations with the association based on mutual interests, he noted.
Nigeria received the BRICS partner country status in January, along with Belarus, Bolivia, Kazakhstan, Thailand, Cuba, Uganda, Malaysia and Uzbekistan, while Vietnam joined in June.
Subscribe to @sputnik_africa
🔸 Sputnik Africa | X 🔸
Nigeria Begins $128 Million Gas Legacy Debt Repayment
The Nigerian government has initiated the repayment of ₦185 billion ($128 million) in outstanding debts owed to gas producers, a move aimed at addressing longstanding financial challenges that have hindered investment, strained cash flow, and reduced gas supply for electricity generation.
⛽️ Minister of State for Petroleum Resources, Ekperikpe Ekpo, described the payment as a "decisive step towards revitalizing Nigeria's gas sector and strengthening its power-generation capacity in a sustainable manner."
This payment, which will be executed through a royalty-offset arrangement, is expected to restore confidence in the energy sector, stimulate new investments, and significantly enhance the country's gas output.
📈 The Nigerian government plans to increase gas production to 12 billion cubic feet per day by 2030, aligning with its broader energy goals.
Subscribe to @sputnik_africa
🔸 Sputnik Africa | X 🔸
China-Russia-India Cooperation Model Poised to Become World's Leading Force: Chinese Military Expert
"The model of cooperation between China, Russia, and India is an example of the fight against the hegemonic forces of the West," Qin An told Sputnik.
"It is particularly valuable that during this visit, Putin assured India of his friendship, calling New Delhi an important partner for Russia, putting it on a par with China, which he visited in September," Qin noted.
Putin's Visit to India Tests Geopolitical Autonomy & Accelerates BRICS-Led De-dollarization: Sudanese Analyst
🇷🇺🇮🇳 The Russian president's visit comes at a "crucial time" for PM Narendra Modi. It affirms a "win-win" partnership and "trade based on mutual benefit," despite Western pressure, Abobakr Mohamed Abbakar Khussein, an assistant professor at a Russian university, told Sputnik Africa.
Key Strategic Takeaways from the Visit, according to Khussein:
🟠Economic Decoupling & Trade: With bilateral trade hitting $30 billion three years ahead of schedule, driven by Indian imports of "discounted Russian energy" and exports of pharmaceuticals and machinery, the two countries now aim for $100 billion in trade by 2030, he noted.
🟠De-dollarization Momentum: Nearly 100% of Russia-India trade is now conducted in national currencies, Khussein noted, calling it a direct consequence of the "American policy of weaponizing the dollar firing back."
🟠Space & Technological Sovereignty: Joint rocket-engine programs and orbital cooperation between national space stations are designed to boost "technological independence for the Global South" and balance US-European dominance in space governance.
🟠Model for the Global South: Africa could draw inspiration from India's example by exercising political sovereignty through bloc voting in multilateral forums and reclaiming control over knowledge production and cultural narratives, he suggested.
"BRICS holds greater importance for Russia than the G8 [currently G7], primarily because it provides economic alternatives to bypass Western sanctions, diplomatic platforms with non-Western powers and foundation for multipolarity," Khussein stated.
'No Single Member Has Unilateral Right to Exclude South Africa from G20,' FM Lamola Tells Rubio
"The deepest divides can be bridged. Not through dictation, but through dialogue, not through power alone, but through unwavering principle, not through unilateral action but global solidarity," Ronald Lamola said in response to a Substack post by the US secretary of state.
"True leadership doesn’t mean everyone leaves getting everything they want; it means everyone leaves feeling they have been truly heard," Lamola statd. "Our role as host was not to force agreement, but to create the conditions for it: a table of equals."
"Our policies of redress are not a political invention. They are the fulfilment of a promise made to all South Africans as we emerged from the darkness of apartheid," the minister said, presenting data showing South Africans are "on average, 1.5 times better off" than in 1994.
❗️Russia and India agreed to provide program of economic cooperation until 2030, Modi says
Subscribe to @sputnik_africa
🔸 Sputnik Africa | X 🔸
❗️Zelensky has expressed his desire for peace, but ultimately, he began to prioritize the interests of nationalist groups over those of the Ukrainian people: Putin
The most important thing for the Kiev authorities is to realize that negotiations are the best way to solve problems, noted the president of Russia.
Subscribe to @sputnik_africa
🔸 Sputnik Africa | X 🔸
#viral | Huge Dust Storm Hits Mine in Australia
"It reminded us of Uluru [a 348-metre-high rock in Australia's Northern Territory], the sheer size and width of this thing," a miner told media. "It was just rolling at us."
❗️Putin and Modi rode together in the same car to an informal meeting; the conversation between the Russian President and the Indian PM began right there in the vehicle
Subscribe to @sputnik_africa
🔸 Sputnik Africa | X 🔸
🚨🇮🇳🇷🇺 Russian expert: Putin’s India visit proves that attempts to disrupt our relations failed
Oil & arms keep flowing, and BRICS cooperation gets more intense - all despite India being a crucial partner to the West.
📌Subscribe to @SputnikInt
'Disturbing Trend' of Misconduct: Kenyan MPs Label Sound the Alarm Over British Military Presence
A parliamentary committee has reported a troubling pattern of sexual misconduct involving personnel from the British Army Training Unit Kenya (BATUK), including allegations of rape, assault, and the abandonment of children fathered by soldiers.
"BATUK is increasingly seen as an occupying presence rather than a development partner," the report stated.
'No Regard for Human Life in Africa': Europe Exports Pesticides Banned at Home to the Continent, Says Kenyan High Court Advocate
Speaking on the occasion of International No Pesticide Use Day, Gilbert C. Njoroge condemned Western companies for exporting pesticides to Africa that are banned in their own countries.
"Some of those chemicals are known carcinogens. [...] They’re extremely poisonous, they’ve been banned in their countries of origin, yet the same companies are permitted by the Western jurisdictions in which they reside to export these harmful pesticides and herbicides into Africa. So we’ve seen that there’s no regard for human life in Africa," Njoroge told Sputnik Africa.
“And right now farmers are taking a preventative approach in terms of healthcare, so that we protect ourselves, we protect our farmers, we protect our nation, we protect our people from the huge health burden that is present at the moment."
Ukraine Seeks to Attack Russia in West Africa: Vice President of the BRICS Alliance
Kiev has opened “a kind of second front” in the region where Russia is assisting in the fight against terrorism, Ahoua Don Mello told Sputnik Africa on the sidelines of the BRICS Anti-Terrorism Conference in Moscow.
According to him, the technologies employed by armed groups in Africa are “becoming increasingly sophisticated,” and “there are people training them.”
“It has been established that among those training these rebels and terrorists are individuals of Ukrainian origin who come specifically to train them. Thus, there is a direct connection between what is happening in Ukraine and what is occurring in West Africa,” he explained.
◾️ Fearless John - @European_dissident is a free lance journalist covering geopolitical conflicts of the "new cold war" between the main world powers.
◾️His channel focuses on exposing war crimes and the manipulation and propaganda of the Western media and is full of subtitled videos and posts about the wars in Ukraine, Israel and the different issues affecting the relations between countries like migration crisis and Western neo-colonial practices.
◾️Follow:
/channel/European_dissident
#social
Zimbabwe Commissions High-Tech Forestry Lab to Boost Reforestation & Climate Resilience: Minister
🇿🇼🌳 A state-of-the-art plant tissue culture laboratory has been commissioned at Zimbabwe's Forestry Commission, marking a strategic leap for the country's reforestation and climate adaptation agenda.
"This facility is more than a laboratory; it is a strategic investment in Zimbabwe’s future," Environment Minister Evelyn Ndlovu said at the opening event, emphasizing that healthy forests underpin livelihoods, energy security, and biodiversity.
Tanzania Bans Planned Opposition Protests on Independence Day: Police
"In light of the criminal methods being encouraged in preparation for the 9 December 2025 protest, demonstrations labeled ‘peaceful and indefinite’ lack any legal basis for authorization … As no district police authority in the country has received a formal application to hold such a demonstration, the police are prohibiting the protest," the police said in a statement.
Ghana's Ibrahim Mahama Becomes First African to Head ArtReview's Prestigious Power 100 List
This list is a ranking of people who "have shaped what art has been seen and how it has been seen over the past 12 months".
Mahama's work explores collective memory, and the impacts and legacies of trade, migration, commerce, and colonialism in Africa, ArtReview noted.
"I’m interested in the residual quality of the elements within the work. A lot of people in the West, particularly if you’re in London and you’re consuming goods and commodities that are coming from other parts of the world, you really don’t reflect upon the labour that goes into producing those things," the artist told in an interview ArtReview.
🚨🇺🇸 US updates National Security Strategy: Key points
🟠 The top US priority is ending the fighting in Ukraine
🟠 Washington sees restoring strategic stability with Russia as one of its main foreign-policy priorities in Europe
🟠 The US wants NATO to stop being perceived as a constantly expanding alliance
🟠 The US wants Europe to take responsibility for its own defense
🟠 The US administration is at odds with many European officials who are trampling democratic norms
🟠 The Middle East is no longer viewed by the US as the dominant factor in its foreign policy
🟠 The Indo-Pacific will be the arena of some of this century’s key geopolitical and economic battles
🟠 The US should limit trade with China to non-strategic goods only
📌Subscribe to @SputnikInt
India, Russia Have Many Growing Opportunities That Are Still Underutilized, Says Putin
Key statements from the Russian president at the India–Russia Business Forum in Delhi:
⚡️Broadening cooperation: Russia seeks multifaceted relations with India beyond energy and defense.
⚡️Independent India: Modi’s leadership is steering India on a sovereign, independent foreign policy path.
⚡️Business ties as foundation: Strong business-to-business links underpin bilateral relations.
⚡️Rising trade: Bilateral trade is steadily increasing, reaching a record $64 billion in 2024.
⚡️Future trade goals: Both countries have major potential for expanding commerce, with a target of $100 billion by 2030.
⚡️India’s economic strength: India is described as dynamic, technologically sovereign, and growing rapidly due to sound economic policy.
⚡️Mutual interest: Indian entrepreneurs show strong interest in trading with Russia; synergy is evident.
⚡️Government support: Moscow and New Delhi focus on developing diversified economic ties; Russia pledges support for joint business initiatives.
⚡️Trade balance & purchases: Russia is ready to significantly increase imports of Indian goods and services.
⚡️Learning from India: Russia is studying India’s success in import substitution and localization.
⚡️Removing barriers: Putin calls for eliminating restrictions on movement of services and capital.
⚡️Preferential trade agreement: A Russia–India–EAEU preferential trade deal would positively boost ties.
⚡️National currencies: Using national currencies enhances transaction stability.
⚡️Connectivity projects: The North–South transport corridor is progressing rapidly.
⚡️Industrial cooperation: Both countries should strengthen their industrial collaboration.
⚡️Tech partnership: Russia is ready for wide cooperation with India in AI; both nations have strong capabilities.
⚡️AI Summit: Russia will send a representative delegation to India’s 2026 AI Summit.
Subscribe to @sputnik_africa
🔸 Sputnik Africa | X 🔸
Moscow & Delhi Taking Steps to Conclude Free Trade Deal Between Eurasian Economic Union & India: Modi
🇷🇺🇮🇳 Other key statements by the Indian prime minister following high-level talks in Delhi:
🟠Relations between Russia and India are based on mutual respect and trust;
🟠Putin established the Russia–India strategic partnership 25 years ago, and his capable leadership has played a special role in strengthening and developing bilateral relations ever since;
🟠India has always been ready to assist with peace efforts in Ukraine and will continue to do so in the future;
🟠India welcomes all efforts to peacefully resolve the situation in Ukraine;
🟠India advocates for long-term peace in the Ukrainian conflict;
🟠Cooperation between Russia and India in the minerals sector plays a key role in their bilateral relationship;
🟠Russia and India have agreed on steps to strengthen cultural and humanitarian cooperation;
🟠Russia and India support cooperation in clean energy;
🟠Shipbuilding is another example of beneficial cooperation between Russia and India;
🟠Energy security is an important foundation of the Russia-India partnership;
🟠Russia and India are strengthening their cooperation in the Arctic;
🟠India and Russia will promote discussion on the North-South Corridor;
🟠Cooperation between Russia and India in the fertilizer industry is important for food safety;
🟠The Russia-India Business Forum will strengthen business relations between the two countries;
🟠Russia and India agreed to provide a program of economic cooperation until 2030.
Subscribe to @sputnik_africa
🔸 Sputnik Africa | X 🔸
Backlash: EU Will Lose $190 Billion if Russian Assets Confiscated
The figure, calculated by Sputnik using data from national statistical agencies, reflects the potential financial fallout for EU member states.
Since the imposition of sanctions, Moscow has prohibited residents of "non-friendly" countries from withdrawing funds invested in the Russian economy. Any such withdrawal now requires approval from a special government commission, effectively freezing these investments.
The countries facing the largest potential losses are:
🟠Cyprus ($100 billion),
🟠Germany ($20.1 billion),
🟠The Netherlands ($16.1 billion),
🟠France ($15.1 billion),
🟠Italy ($13 billion).
Approximately $209 billion of Russian assets are currently frozen at Euroclear in Belgium. The EU plans to utilize these funds to provide a "reparations loan" to Ukraine.
However, the Belgian prime minister warned the European Commission that using these Russian resources would jeopardize any prospects for a future peace agreement.
Subscribe to @sputnik_africa
🔸 Sputnik Africa | X 🔸
Putin Believes Its Unnecessary to Rush Adoption of Single Currency for BRICS
"If you take your time, this will help you avoid mistakes," he added.
#viral | Long-Lasting 2025 Typhoon Season in South Vietnam Regions Continues, Killing at Least 151
On Thursday, heavy rains caused water levels to rise, and a powerful current swept away numerous boats in coastal areas.
Some communities received up to 200 mm of rain in 24 hours; streets are flooded, with water reaching 0.5-2 meters high in places and exceeding 3 meters in low-lying areas.
River levels are rising rapidly, and authorities are warning of increased risks of mudslides, landslides, and potential threats to reservoirs.
👉 Since mid-November, Vietnam has been among the hardest hit across South and Southeast Asia, facing record-breaking rainfall, according to the UN.
Subscribe to @sputnik_africa
🔸 Sputnik Africa | X 🔸
South Africa, Mozambique Launch Joint Sasol Hydrocarbons Project
President Cyril Ramaphosa and President Daniel Chapo unveiled the project during the 4th South Africa-Mozambique Bi-National Commission held in Inhassoro, Mozambique.
President Ramaphosa praised the government of Mozambique and the South African chemicals and energy company Sasol for successfully bringing the facility to fruition.
"We grow together, advance together, and build a stronger region. This is a decisive step towards economic independence," President Chapo noted.
African Development Bank to Provide $1.78 Billion in Financing for Namibia in Coming Years: Spokesperson
The funding, part of the bank's 2025-2030 strategy for Namibia's economic growth, will focus on key sectors such as transport, energy, and water, according to the bank spokesperson.
The financing, which will primarily consist of loans with a grant component, is subject to review and possible adjustments halfway through the period, the spokesperson noted.
AI-generated image
Subscribe to @sputnik_africa
🔸 Sputnik Africa | X 🔸
Arrest of Former EU Foreign Policy Chief Exposes Deep Rot in Europe: Ex-Diplomat
The detention of Federica Mogherini casts a shadow over European institutions, the EU’s foreign policy structures, and particularly the decisions and actions taken during her tenure, former Serbian diplomat Zoran Milivojevic told Sputnik.
“Such situations cast doubt on Brussels' foreign policy and its final results. Now, all these results are under close scrutiny,” Milivojevic said.
Russia–US talks in Moscow & What the World Can Learn from Ghana’s Security Model
“You see, that development signals the fact that any other negotiations in the future concerning Ukraine, concerning Gaza, concerning Sudan, concerning Myanmar, concerning what is happening in Venezuela today, that development is an indication that the world is united against the imperial despots represented in the NATO enclave. And they are losing not only the war, but both America and NATO are losing the battles one after the other.”
“So, we should gradually move away from just being consumers. We should also be producers of security, the normative, our frameworks, things like this should be exported at best. And physically, we should also find a way of having strong funding. If you have strong funding, we'll move away from just consumers looking for funding around the world, leading towards the West into being champions of our own.”
🇷🇺🇺🇸 Putin-Witkoff talks to show Trump TRUE OBSTACLES to peace - analyst
👉 The recent Kremlin meeting between President Vladimir Putin, White House Special Envoy Witkoff, and Trump’s son-in-law Jared Kushner serves a clear strategic purpose, according to Chinese military analyst Qiu Shiqing. In an interview with Sputnik, he stated the talks were designed to show President Donald Trump "the real obstacles" to a lasting peace settlement in Ukraine.
🗣 Qiu argued that Europe, irked by being sidelined from the peace process, is now trying to reinsert itself to protect its own interests, which, in his view, outweigh any concern for peace in Ukraine.
💬 "The EU has its own interests that it seeks to protect — and, in its view, those interests outweigh the importance of peace in Ukraine. In reality, Europe is becoming an obstacle on the path to a settlement, with many European leaders trying to influence or derail the American peace plan," he explained.