Both leaders of Brazil, and Cuba, have canceled their participation at the BRICS summit being hosted by Vladimir Putin in Russia this week.
“Unexpected circumstances have prevented Presidents of Brazil Lula da S Silva and Cuba Miguel Diaz Canel from coming,” Kremlin presidential adviser Yury Ushakov told Russian state media in comments on October 21.
Lula, who is 78 years old, suffered a minor hemorrhage in the brain after falling at home over the weekend. He will appear via videoconference.
Russian state media reported that Diaz-Canel has “serious problems with energy”.
BRICS is a grouping of emerging economies that includes Russia, China, India and Brazil.
Egypt, Ethiopia and Iran joined the international organization in 2024. This was the first expansion of the group since December 2010, when South Africa joined.
Cuba has asked to be included in the BRICS as a “partner nation” in a letter sent to Russian President Vladimir Putin on October 8.
Moscow hopes that the summit will send a strong message to Western nations about its ability to still exert influence.
The Kremlin called the three-day event that began on October 22 “one of the largest-scale foreign policy meetings ever” in Russia.
This is Pyongyang’s first public response to multiple reports from Kyiv or Seoul about such a deployment.
The loan will go towards Ukraine’s military expenditures. Kyiv can invest in key equipment for fighting Russia, including artillery, air defence, and wider equipment support.
The Air Force reported that Ukrainian forces destroyed 46 of 60 Shahed drones launched overnight by Russia.
A government source told South Korean news agency Yonhap that, “while watching signs of North Korea and Russia military cooperation, response measures will be taken step by step.”
Russian local authorities claim that Ukrainian drones attacked four Russian plants, including three distilleries, overnight on October 22, including in the oblasts of Tula, Tambov, and Voronezh.
In an interview with Wladyslaw Bartoszewsk, Polish Deputy Minister of Foreign Affairs on October 21, Wladyslaw T. Bartoszewsk stated that Warsaw wants to review the classified additions made to Ukraine’s recent victory plan presented by President Volodymyr Zelensky.
This includes 1,350 casualties that Russian forces have suffered in the last day.
The Donetsk Regional Prosecutor’s Office reported on October 21 that Russian soldiers executed two captured Ukrainians near Selydove, in Donetsk Oblast.
The paramilitary Rapid Support Forces of Sudan (RSF) claim to have shot down an cargo plane in Darfur. It is speculated that Russians were on board.
Zelensky stated in his evening speech that “every meeting with our partners includes discussions about the Defense-Industrial Complex.” “We need Ukraine’s ability to defend its independence and sovereignty regardless of any threats from the outside world,” Zelensky said in his evening address.
Sandu stated on X that “the people of Moldova have spoken. Our EU future will be now anchored in our constitution.” “We fought fairly and won an unfair battle. The fight is not over. “We will continue to push for peace, prosperity and the freedom to create our own future.”
“Your unwavering commitment is not just an act of friendship. It’s a powerful sign of the shared values which bind our nations,” said Rustem Umerov, Ukraine’s defense minister, alongside U.S. Secretary of Defense Lloyd Austin.
Local authorities reported that on October 21, Russia attacked the towns Kurakhove, Myrnohrad and Pokrovsk in the Donetsk Oblast district. Three people were killed and two others injured.
On the morning of October 21, Russia struck the residential area in the city and damaged 30 buildings.
In an interview with the BBC published on October 21, Yulia Navalnaya said, “I will participate… as a Candidate” in the elections when the time is appropriate.
Lloyd Austin, the Pentagon chief, said that ammunition, military equipment and weapons would be included.
Peter Stano, spokesperson for the European Commission, said that the referendum on Moldova joining the EU which was held alongside elections in the nation, was a result of “unprecedented” interference by Russia and its agents.
“North Korea sending soldiers to fight alongside Russia’s troops in Ukraine would be a significant escalation,” NATO secretary general Mark Rutte stated on social media after a conversation between South Korean President Yoon Suk Yeol.
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