On January 1, State Duma Speaker Vyacheslav Volodin led the Russian delegation that took part in the inauguration ceremony of Brazilian President Jair Bolsonaro. Volodin conveyed congratulations from Russian President Vladimir Putin to Bolsonaro. The Russian government was very cautious in commenting Bolsonaro's election, which represent a change from Brazil's socialist path. Bolsonaro, who said that his election freed the country from “socialism and political correctness,” does not conceal his desire to position Brazil as the US' best ally in Latin America. In the beginning of January, in an interview with the Brazilian TV channel SBT, Bolsonaro did not rule out the establishment of a US military base in his country.

"The issue of the physical [presence of the base] may be even called symbolic. Today the capabilities of the American, Chinese and Soviet armed forces reach all parts of the world regardless of [the presence of] a base. However, depending on what will happen in the world, maybe this issue will have to be discussed in the future… My rapprochement with the US is an economic issue, but it could be military as well. We may ink an agreement in the specified area," Bolsonaro stated. However, it is worth noting that Brazilian Minister of Defense, General Fernando Azevedo e Silva, opposed Bolsonaro's remark, and stated that he see no reason for allowing Washington to set up a military base in Brazil.

The impact of the new Brazilian presidency on the BRICS group comprised of Brazil, Russia, India, China, and South Africa will not be favorable for Russia. According to El Murid, who does not view Brazil's new path favorably, with Bolsonaro's elections the BRICS is becoming a tool of US President Donald Trump to promote "his project of a new world order." "In this case, the BRICS definitively loses its identity… and becomes a target of the Pax Americana 2.0 policy,"

The BRICS loses its identity and becomes a target of the Pax Americana 2.0 Policy

"Jair Bolsonaro has been elected as the next president of Brazil after the second-round vote. His being a populist, let alone a far-right one, is a separate matter altogether. In this regard, one of the largest countries in Latin America is clearly reversing the trend of left-wing populist projects in a huge region. "The Latin American left is losing to everyone and everywhere, and it’s not just the delayed effect of the collapse of the Soviet Union that triggered the collapse of left-wing projects all over the world. The Latinos themselves have proved incapable to make the ruling elite observe the principles that it proclaimed in its slogans.

"And there is yet another aspect of what happened. Brazil occupies an important place in the plans of the current American imperialists. In the event that the global system being broken down according to the scenario of creating separate currency zones, the Brazilian real will become the first candidate for the 'position' of the main clearing currency for the Latin American zone. And Bolsonaro, having explicitly stated that Brazil 'will no longer be on the sidelines of the developed countries', seems to be an ideal candidate for Trump in terms of promoting the breakdown of the global project.

"And we need to realize that in this scenario, the BRICS with its full membership is essentially becoming merely a tool of Trump for promoting his project of a new world order. In this case, the BRICS definitively loses its identity (although this organization was from the very beginning a purely statistical association, brought together according to matching indicators, rather than ideological and philosophical attributes) and becomes a target of the Pax Americana 2.0 policy.

"Serious contradictions are bound to emerge within the BRICS, and the newly imperial America will play the role of arbitrator. That is, at least, what Trump will attempt to do. And the new Brazilian leadership is unlikely to oppose him."

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Russian Official: BRICS Countries Continue Unified Payments Systems Developing, No Plans for Bitcoin in Near Future

Last week, the news that Russia is considering investing huge amount of money into Bitcoin as a means to invade US sanctions spread like fire. Given the fact that Russia has been working on de-dollarization plans for a long time now while looking for an alternative reserve currency further put force behind this news. This got the crypto enthusiasts excited as this would have meant huge investment into the crypto market and that too directly from the government. However, this might not be happening at least, any time soon, as the Russian news channel, Forklog, the chairperson of an interdepartmental working group of the State Duma for managing risks of cryptocurrency turnover, as saying, Even if Russia wants to place its cryptocurrency assets now, it simply cannot do this, due to the fact that we do not have any mechanisms that would allow us to introduce a system, where these assets would be stored, which authorities would be responsible for it, which would be responsible for abuses and stuff. Such a model under the current criminal, financial and civil legislation, in general, does not fit. All over the world, a cryptocurrency is considered as a high-risk asset and a similar model, naturally, would not suit anyone”.

She further pointed out that given the fact that there is lack of any legislative regulation of cryptocurrencies in the territory of the Russian Federation makes what Vladislav Ginko, a teacher at the Russian Academy of National Economy and Public Administration under the President of the Russian Federation, said sound absurd. However, Sidorenko does note a different way to solve this issue which she states is the only way to use digital assets at the state level. She says an interstate cryptocurrency can be created that would then become a unified system of payments between countries.

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