Latest updates, insights, and analysis.
Russia’s VTB bank is once again looking at developing operations in Iran as the conflict situation begins to calm down. Bilateral trade exceeded US$5 billion last year and has grown in 2026 despite problems. VTB will be looking to finance part of that trade.
The Iraq Ambassador to Russia, Dr. Abdul-Karim Hashim Mostafa has said it would be a ‘good idea’ for Iraq to join the BRICS, depending on the terms. Such a move would almost certainly face US opposition.
Russia has resumed the import of gas from Turkmenistan for the first time since 2016. The move fundamentally alters Eurasian and Russian gas flows and bypasses the troublesome Black Sea region.
The new Lucknow facility at the India-Russia Brahmos missile joint venture has increased total production capacity by 20%, with orders expected from other Asian nations.
The Belarus President Aleksander Lukashenko is on an Asian tour and has met with Chinese President Xi Jinping and proposed “11 Key Technologies” in which Belarus wants to cooperate with China in trade and investment.
Russia needs to better secure its arbitration reach by both developing Bilateral Investment Treaties with Global South nations, and / or establishing a BRICS arbitration centre. We can expect a flurry of BIT agreements being signed in the coming months.
The Eurasian Development Bank, in which Russia is a major investor, is set to approve 11 new countries as members, mainly from the Middle East. This will help facilitate Middle East sovereign investments into Central Asia.
The Uzbeki Deputy Prime Minster has been discussing investment opportunities for Russia’s largest dairy producer in Uzbekistan. The country is a high dairy per capita consumer but still needs to import milk.
Russia’s Chukotka region has introduced legislation to provide guidelines for the driverless operations of massive 300 tonne trucks to be used at the Peschanka mine – one of the world’s largest undeveloped copper and gold deposits.
Russia’s Roscosmos with working with the Indian Space Research Organization on multiple space projects, including the BRICS Space Council as well as assistance with India’s planned Bharatiya Antariksh Space Station, planned for deployment in 2028.
Russia’s Kalashnikov have agreed a deal to supply the Indian armed forces with anti-drone equipment and specialist drone small arms equipment, mainly for use in cold high-altitude regions in the Indian Himalayas.
Russia’s MC-21 commercial airliner should be certified by mid 2027 and can then enter service. It is intended as a replacement for Airbus and Boeing medium-haul jets and is made with 100% localised Russian components.
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