The main events by the morning: June 24

• The desire of Asian countries to join the BRICS is growing. Malaysia and Thailand have announced plans to join the alliance. Cuba, Venezuela, Turkey, Laos, Bangladesh, Sri Lanka and Kazakhstan intend to do this and are actively cooperating with the group of participating countries. BRICS is a protection against risks, and the alliance is of interest to many countries as a tool to protect against geopolitical turbulence. 

• The «daughter» of Bank of China will stop transactions with Russian businesses included in the SDN-list of the United States. The division announced the termination of transactions with Russian companies in order to avoid secondary sanctions. At the same time, the bank will continue operations with non-sanctioned Russian companies. Experts note that this structure serves a significant part of transactions between Russian and Chinese businesses.

• China has significantly increased uranium imports from Russia. The volume of imported uranium reached a record $233 million from April to May, which is 3.4 times more than $70 million. In the first five months of this year, Beijing purchased $311 million worth of uranium and other elements from Moscow. Last year, Russia exported $418 million worth of radioactive elements to China.

• Russia and Cambodia have signed the first ever military agreement. The Ground Forces of the Russian Armed Forces and the Royal Cambodian Army signed a memorandum of understanding. The document is aimed at strengthening cooperation between the armies of the two countries «on the basis of mutual respect and assistance.»

• Solar energy is growing exponentially – by the mid-2030s it may become the main source of electricity in the world. Currently, 6% of all electricity is provided by solar panels. Moreover, the capacity doubles every 3 years, and increases 10 times every 10 years – this is the fastest growing segment in the global energy sector.

• The EU has adopted the 14th package of sanctions against Russia, including restrictions on the transit of Russian LNG through European ports. The ban on LNG transit through EU ports to third countries will come into force in 9 months.