Moscow hosted a roundtable discussion “Consumer Protection in the Era of E-Commerce in the BRICS Countries” held within the framework of the Russian BRICS Chairmanship in 2020

> The plenary meeting was focused on the view of young parliamentarians on global security and breakthrough development in the digital era. The event is taking place in St Petersburg

Russia has not yet made a decision to cancel the summits of the Shanghai Cooperation Organisation (SCO) and BRICS due to the coronavirus disease outbreak, Kremlin spokesman Dmitry Peskov said

Since the 2014 breakdown of relations with the West, Russia has re-oriented its focus towards non-western institutions, further cementing its move away from post- ‘Cold War’, western-dominated order. This move has also been prompted by economic compulsions and a need to fulfil its own ‘national development goals.’

The BRICS Working Group is planning to discuss the challenges caused by the increasing number of mergers in the pharmaceutical sector, analyse possible ways to prevent anticompetitive practices and the unfavourable effects of some mergers in this socially significant industry, and share the experience of evaluating global consolidation for use as best practices in the BRICS countries

The 23rd meeting of the BRICS Contact Group on Economic and Trade Issues took place. It was the Contact Group’s first meeting since the start of the Russian BRICS Chairmanship in 2020