Putin visits China

President of Russia, Vladimir Putin, has visited China for the 4th time since the beginning of the Ukraine war. He met with Chinese President, Xi Jin Ping, in the North-Eastern city of Harbin. They met to discuss continued Chinese trade with Russia, as Chinese exports to Russia have declined by 16% year on year in March. Recently, Chinese Banks have been more careful with their processing and authorisation of Russian payments for sanctioned goods. This is to avoid secondhand Western Sanctions on countries aiding Russia to avoid sanctions.  

Shoigu replaced by an Economist

Sergei Shoigu was Russian Defence Minister for 12 years until he was promoted to Secretary of the Security Council. He has been replaced by the economist Andrei Belousov who previously served as Deputy Prime Minister of Russia. Belousov’s role is to optimise the Russian military sector and make it more efficient and cost-effective. Putin announced on his trip to China that Russian defence spending will increase to 8.7% of the GDP, by the end of the year. This is approximately $170 billion.  

Sergei Shoigu is replacing Nicolai Patreshev in the Security Council. His demotion is significant as he has been one of Putin’s closest allies. He made up Putin’s circle during their shared time as KGB agents. 

South Africa perishes, but choose Israel

South Africa has decided to go after Israel for a second time in the International Court of Justice in the Hague. Earlier in the year, in January, South Africa accused Israel of genocide of the Palestinians in Gaza. Now, they demand the end of Israel’s military assault on Rafah. Rafah is on the southern border with Egypt and has been where almost all of the Gazans have fled to escape fighting. As a result, the area is harboring Hamas fighters. 

Current situations in South Africa would hopefully draw the government’s attention, such as the spiraling crime rate. South Africa has the second highest homicide rate in the world with 46 homicides per 100 thousand, only behind Jamaica. Nearly a third of the population is unemployed and living in poverty. Furthermore, South Africa’s unreliable energy sector meant only 35 days in 2023 when there was not a power outage.  

Currently, the South African General Election will take place on May 29th, where the ruling African National Congress (ANC) is facing a decline in support. Their polling has declined to less than 50%, considering they were at around 70% in 2004. 

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Cover Image – Mikhail Metzel, Sputnik, Kremlin Pool Photo via AP