• Second, Russia economic advance, even under conditions of Western sanctions, confirms the analysis which the RCIT has advocated since a number of years: Russia  has not a “weak economy”, it is not a “semi-colony” or a “sub-imperialism”. It is rather an imperialist Great Power in its own right – even if the U.S. and China remain the two strongest powers  on the planet. It is one of that handful of powers which shapes global developments. [6] 

    

• Hence, socialists must not view Russia as a “lesser evil” or even an “anti-imperialist” force. It is an enemy of the workers and oppressed like all other  imperialist powers. Socialists should therefore not support Russia (or any other Great Power) in inter-imperialist conflicts. And in conflicts, where the Kremlin attacks smaller countries and  oppressed peoples – like in Chechnya, Syria or the Ukraine – socialists must defend the later. 

    

• Notably absent from the joint statement was the green agenda, including clean energy development and other climate action. This omission raises eyebrows at a time when China strategically positions green issues at the forefront of its diplomacy. The statement’s references to climate change are tepid, with emphasis put on nations’ “common but differentiated responsibilities” towards climate action under the UN climate convention and Paris Agreement.

      

• Malaysia and Thailand are the latest nations

• "Being a member of BRICS would open up trade and investment opportunities, so the question is 'why not?'" Piti Srisangam, the executive director of the ASEAN Foundation, told DW. 

    
• "The bloc has members from all over the world, but none from Southeast Asia yet," he added. 
• It's better for them to join groups like BRICS so that they will have a larger voice in the international arena. But the major benefit will be trade," he added.
• China has been Malaysia's largest trading partner for the past 15 years and Thailand's biggest for 11 years, according to official data.

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• Germany has long been praised for its recycling prowess, but its efforts to reuse packaging are perhaps more impressive. Three of its favourite drinks – beer, water and milk (arguably in that order) – are covered by nationwide deposit schemes. Food companies are starting to embrace the refill movement for other foods as well.
• In 2021, the average German generated about eight times their bodyweight in waste: a whopping 651kg, more than the average residents of all but four countries in Europe. Germany created 64% more plastic waste that year than it did two decades earlier, and it burned most of it.

• Recycling is one option, but plastic recycling is a knotty and unresolved issue. Besides, the European hierarchy of waste has put prevention and reuse above recycling since 2008. But campaigners say rules to reduce packaging are riddled with loopholes – and are calling not just for tighter regulations, but also a culture shift.
• If you need to use it – for hygiene reasons, say – “then that packaging needs to stay in the loop for as long as possible”.

• Hidden behind this process is a delicate alliance of companies that have agreed to standardise and share their packaging, some of which go back a long way. The Milch Mehrweg Pool – “Milk Reuse Pool”, or MMP – for example, was started by the German dairy industry in the 80s and formalised in the 90s.
• To cut down on plastic waste, its founder, Henning Reiche, decided to sell the beans in MMP bottles, which he thinks also helps with the marketing. The brown glass keeps the beans safe from sunlight but customers can still see through it. “It’s a nice symbol of the transparency that we want to express with the pricing.”
• but based on numbers from the mineral water industry, it estimates the average milk bottle in its pool lasts about 50 cycles in the system

• The benefits of a reuse pool include economies of scale and lower barriers to entry for newcomers. The standardisation process means bottles can be used by all companies in the pool, so “empties” need only to be taken to the nearest buyer. This cuts transport costs – and emissions.

• “I realised it’s a totally different story for other European countries that are starting from zero,” says Klein. Brands don’t know which labels and machinery to use, supermarkets don’t have space to stack crates and consumers aren’t used to returning empty containers.

• “If you look from an outside perspective, it doesn’t make so much sense to carry dirty empty jars and bottles back to the supermarket,” says Klein. “In the long run, what makes much more sense is if reusable packaging is being picked up at home.”

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