Rafael weakened on Sunday into a low-pressure system over the Gulf of Mexico, after striking Cuba last week as a Category 3 hurricane, according to the United States National Hurricane Center (NHC) based in Miami.

The NHC reported on Sunday that the post-tropical cyclone was located about 560 kilometers (345 miles) north-northwest of Progreso, Mexico, with maximum sustained winds of 55 km/h (35 mph). It was moving eastward at 6 km/h (3 mph) and was expected to turn south towards southern Mexico as it continued to weaken.

Meteorologists warned that the storm was likely to produce dangerous waves and rip currents along parts of the northern and western Gulf coast.

Rafael made landfall on Wednesday in western Cuba. Its strong winds left the entire island without electricity, forced the evacuation of hundreds of thousands of people, and knocked down hundreds of homes.

Chinese President Xi Jinping will attend the XVI BRICS Summit in Kazan, Russia, from October 22 to 24, as a guest of Russian President Vladimir Putin, announced Chinese Foreign Ministry spokesperson Hua Chunying.

The upcoming summit, the first held after the expansion of BRICS, has attracted significant attention from the international community, stated another spokesperson for the ministry, Mao Ning.

According to Mao, Xi will participate in both small and large leader meetings and the BRICS Plus leaders’ dialogue, delivering important speeches. He will also engage in in-depth exchanges with leaders from other countries regarding the current international situation, practical BRICS cooperation, the development of the BRICS mechanism, and other significant issues of common interest.

Mao noted that since the inception of BRICS, member states have committed to upholding multilateralism and becoming a positive, stabilizing, and benevolent force in international affairs.

China is willing to work with all parties to ensure stable and lasting progress in BRICS cooperation, open a new era of unity and overcoming challenges for the Global South, and jointly promote global peace and development, added Mao.

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CEL

Venezuela is pointing to its vast crude oil reserves—the largest in the world—and its strategic geographical location as key advantages for becoming a full member of the BRICS group of emerging economies, a goal it hopes to achieve at the upcoming summit in Russia this month, according to a statement released this Saturday by the Venezuelan Foreign Ministry.

According to Deputy Foreign Minister for Europe, Coromoto Godoy, Venezuela’s inclusion in BRICS would make the group “the ultimate oil and energy powerhouse,” while also facilitating the diversification of energy sources among its members (Brazil, Russia, India, China, South Africa, Iran, Saudi Arabia, the UAE, Egypt, and Ethiopia).

Furthermore, Venezuela’s geographic position, with “access to the Atlantic Ocean, provides a strategic connection to other regions of the world, which will help increase and deepen economic and trade cooperation between BRICS and Latin America and the Caribbean,” Godoy explained, as cited in the statement.

During a virtual conference, Godoy asserted that Venezuela’s entry into the group would guarantee a “win-win” relationship and send a “key message” that Venezuela “always aligns itself with peace and the search for alternatives, in the face of a hegemony that seeks to suppress diversity.”

“The desire to become a full member of this group coincides with one of Venezuela’s historical objectives: contributing to the development of a new international geopolitical landscape,” added the deputy foreign minister.

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CEL

This week, the Kremlin confirmed that leaders from 24 countries have confirmed their attendance at the BRICS summit, which will take place in the Russian city of Kazan from October 22 to 24.