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The narrow escape of the Republican candidate Donald Trump from the gunshot at the campaign meeting in Pennsylvania on Saturday has imparted a more confrontationist dimension to the Presidential elections scheduled on November 5. The shooting incident just on the eve of the four day Republican convention beginning on July15 has given further ammunition to aggressive Trump to galvanise his supporters against the Democratic nominee President Joe Biden.

Bangladesh's Prime Minister Sheikh Hasina's recent visit to China has sparked discussions about potential implications for regional dynamics, particularly in relation to India. Sheikh Hasina, who has visited India twice this year, had not travelled to China in five years prior to this recent trip from July 8 to 10.

For quite some time now tensions have been rising in Syrian opposition-held areas over Turkish moves towards rapprochement with Syria. The recent violence against Syrians in Turkey acted as a catalyst and sparked retaliatory riots in opposition-held areas of north-western Syria.

Five days after the historic mandate given by the French voters in the national elections on July 7, the process of carrying talks for a coalition government against the Far Right has become difficult with President Emanuel Macron setting his terms for building a’ Republican” majority in the new national assembly before he appoints a new Prime Minister.

'No', President Joe Biden is in no mood to step away from the race. Not for the sake of Vice President Kamala Harris nor for making the “Vice President Donald J Trump” gaffe. President Joe Biden mixed up names and titles at the Nato presser in Washington DC, where he answered tricky questions and defended his mental acuity. One skeptical journalist wrote that President Joe Biden “dropped the Ming vase” and then spent the rest of the presser putting it back in shape.

Europe has entered a dangerous period with all the potential of the 28 month old Ukraine war crossing the border into other parts of the continent. The summit of the 32 nation North Atlantic Treaty Organisation(NATO) held in Washington on July 9 to 11 has decided to pledge US $43 billion worth of military aid to Ukraine next year and what is more, has declared their intention to admit Ukraine to NATO as a full member. Ukraine President Zelensky attended the summit hosted by US President Joe Biden.

People of France have voted against the far-right in the parliamentary elections. Contrary to many opinion polls, the National Rally of Le Pen could win only 143 seats and stood third. The newly formed Left coalition, New Popular Front achieved a victory by emerging as the largest bloc with182 seats, while President Macron’s group Ensemble won 163 seats. As a result of this fractured mandate, no single party or Front secured an outright majority. For a majority, one needs to win 289 in the 577-seat National Assembly. The New Popular Front fell short of majority by over 100 seats. These elections were called by President Macron, after his Party received a setback in the elections to the European Union parliament held in June.

LONDON: Labour has spent its first week in power signalling a changed approach from the Tories — a national wealth fund for infrastructure projects, a reset to devolution with a new council of the regions.

The 22nd India-Russia Annual Summit held in Moscow on July 8-9 2024 will go a long way in re-embellishing one of the most enduring friendships in the geopolitical theatre. Moscow and New Delhi have seen many ups and downs together, no matter who has been in power in the Grand Kremlin Palace or in the Parliament House. Fortunately, India-Russia ties are still regime change-proof, and have withstood the serial ideological onslaughts from the United States-led ‘rules-based order’ of the West.

As global economic dynamics shift, emerging economies seek new opportunities for growth and influence. A notable development is the BRICS coalition, originally comprising Brazil, Russia, India, China, and South Africa. With its recent expansion, the BRICS framework has introduced the concept of BRICS+, aiming for deeper and more flexible economic integration. This article explores the differences between BRICS and BRICS+, and examines the potential benefits for Bangladesh should it join this influential group.