Authored by Eurasianet via OilPrice.com,
BRICS demanded greater developing-country influence at the IMF, World Bank and WTO but avoided directly naming the United States in its criticism.
The declaration urged “maximum restraint” in the Middle East and made no mention of Ukraine, illustrating the compromises required to maintain consensus.
Kazakhstan used the summit to balance BRICS ties with Washington, while Uzbekistan’s president traveled to South Korea and sent a deputy prime minister to represent the country in New Delhi.
Like the Shanghai Cooperation Organization, BRICS, the global grouping of emerging markets and developing countries, is intent on diminishing Western influence over the world economy. And just like the SCO summit earlier in September, the latest conclave of BRICS leaders fell short of presenting a united front against the West, the United States in particular.
Both the SCO and BRICS include China, India, Iran and Russia as permanent members. Among the four, India, the host nation for this edition of the BRICS annual summit, has acted as a brake on efforts to de-dollarize the global economy. Kazakhstan and Uzbekistan are both BRICS partner countries.
BRICS members adopted a 140-point joint statement September 12 that featured calls for major reforms of Western-dominated financial institutions, including the World Trade Organization, the International Monetary Fund and the World Bank, to give developing countries a greater say in policymaking and practices.
Some joint statement provisions took oblique swipes at the Trump administration. For example, in comments on the WTO, the statement noted a "proliferation of trade-restrictive actions that are inconsistent with WTO rules, whether in the form of indiscriminate raising of tariffs and non-tariff measures, or protectionism under the guise of environmental objectives."
But the statement does not mention the United States or Trump by name, and it soft-pedals the group's stance on the Gulf war currently embroiling the US, Israel and Iran, calling for "maximum restraint" of all sides, instead of adopting a clear position more favorable to Tehran.
Iran came away with a symbolic victory of sorts, however, underscored by a one-on-one between Iranian President Masoud Pezeshkian and Abu Dhabi's crown prince, Khaled bin Mohamed bin Zayed, a meeting designed to counter the image that the United States is succeeding in economically isolating Tehran.
A statement issued by Abu Dhabi officials was non-committal about future bilateral ties, however. The two "discussed a number of regional and international issues of mutual interest," while emphasizing a need to promote "de-escalation and strengthen regional stability."
Beyond the Gulf war, the BRICS statement makes no mention of the Russia-Ukraine conflict, a clear win for the Kremlin.
Underscoring a lack of unity within the broader BRICS framework, Uzbek President Shavkat Mirziyoyev passed over the summit in New Delhi, instead making a state visit to South Korea, where he promoted stronger economic ties with the East Asian Tiger.
South Korea will host a gathering of leaders from all five Central Asian states in Seoul under a C5+1 format on September 16.
Meanwhile, in an expanded session of the BRICS gathering, Kazakh President Kassym-Jomart Tokayev adopted a middle-of-the-road stance that, consistent with the country's multi-vector foreign policy, sought to balance the interests of China, Russia, the United States and the European Union.
"The erosion of the international security architecture and protracted conflicts are increasing the risk of a new arms race and strategic miscalculations and practical wrongdoings," Tokayev said. "Therefore, high-level dialogue among nuclear powers is needed to reduce nuclear risks, including those linked to new technologies."
The comments could be seen as referring to the Russia-Ukraine conflict. But they can also be interpreted as a call for the US and China to de-escalate their deepening rivalry for dominance in the development of artificial intelligence. Central Asia is emerging as a central battleground in the brewing race for AI leadership.
Tokayev went on to characterize BRICS as "an open platform for practical cooperation that complements the UN-centered multilateral system and connects peoples, regions and markets."
On the sidelines of the BRICS gathering, Tokayev met with Sergio Gor, the US ambassador to India, who is also the Trump administration's special representative to Central Asian states. Tokayev told Gor that he is looking forward to participating in the G20 meeting to be held in Miami in December. But he also delivered an unusually blunt message, indicating that he expects faster progress on deal-making between the United States and Kazakhstan and the repeal of the Central Asian nation's Jackson-Vanik trade status.
The Miami gathering will provide "a good opportunity to discuss bilateral issues," a Kazakh readout of the conversation quoted Tokayev as saying. "We prefer concrete actions and practical steps to advance our mutual cooperation, rather than just words."
Tyler Durden Wed, 09/16/2026 - 17:40America's already-diminished inventory of air defense interceptor missiles took another significant hit last week, as dozens more were expended to defend US troops in Jordan from an Iranian attack. This latest incident illustrates Iran's use of crafty and increasingly technologically-advanced attacks to further sap US munitions supply and degrade the Pentagon's ability to continue mounting defenses -- or provoking attacks -- in a war nearing the seven-month mark.
The action unfolded on Sept 8, when Iran attacked US forces at the Muwaffaq Salti Air Base in Azraq, Jordan. Unleashing what it called a "punitive operation" following the destruction of five Iranian oil tankers by the US military, Iran fired a volley of about 20 ballistic missiles at the base. No one was killed, but fighters and other aircraft positioned at the facility were damaged.
WATCH: Iran fired 20 ballistic missiles at the U.S.-hosting Al-Azraq Air Base in Jordan overnight.
Dramatic Patriot launch footages show massive Patriot salvos, with OSINT counts estimating 60–100+ interceptors fired in minutes.
At $4–5M per PAC-3 MSE round, that's roughly… pic.twitter.com/bjmuHgydW6
To defend the air base, US forces fired 60 to 70 Patriot interceptors and more than dozen Terminal High Altitude Area Defense (THAAD) interceptors, according to US officials who talked to the Wall Street Journal. Patriots cost the Pentagon about $4 million each, and the more sophisticated THAADs go for $12 to $15 million. That means the defense from this attack on a single target may have cost half a billion dollars or more.
The large expenditure of interceptors was driven by the complexity of the Iranian attack. Part of the strike package included missiles that, at high altitude, release multiple munitions. Over the course of the war, Iran has continued to enhance its already formidable missile capabilities, making warheads more maneuverable and giving some an ability to greatly accelerate before impact. “These types of new tactics that we’re seeing show that the Iranians continue to adapt, continue to learn, continue to experiment, see what works, what doesn’t work,” Conflict Armament Research's Fabian Hinz told the Journal.
News of the latest dent in the US war chest follows a report from the Pentagon's inspector general declaring that the war on Iran “has resulted in strategic inventory shortfalls and revealed industrial base bottlenecks for munitions resupply.” The IG report landed just after President Trump claimed "the United States is producing more Exquisite and Elite Weapons than at any time in our History. They are being delivered on a daily basis to our Forces in the Middle East, and beyond." (Retarded capitalization scheme is, of course, Trump's.)
This photo of a shattered US Air Force jet at Prince Sultan AFB in Saudi Arabia was one of several leaked to CBSAlso this week, the Congressional Budget Office said the Pentagon spent $38 billion on this war of choice -- and that's only through Aug 1. CBO said it expects the meter to keep running at about $2 or $3 billion a month as long as the war goes on. Critically, CBO warned that its estimates were hampered by the Defense Department's refusal to respond to requests for information.
CBO's numbers do not account for a rebuilding of the many US bases in the region that have been hammered by Iranian fire and abandoned by US forces. To the extent this abandonment becomes prudently permanent, excluding that cost may make sense.
CBO further estimated that, as things stood back on Aug 1, it would take $22 billion to restock expended munitions -- attributing $7 billion to cruise missiles and $13 billion for air defense interceptors. “The shortfall would become especially problematic if a conflict arose with an opponent whose arsenal included large numbers of ballistic and cruise missiles,” the CBO reported.
“Claims of U.S. munition shortages are false,” said Pentagon spokesman Sean Parnell. “We have everything required to strike at the time and place of the President’s choosing.” Of course, this is the same administration that falsely told us Iran was on the threshold of having a nuclear bomb.
Tyler Durden Wed, 09/16/2026 - 17:20Authored by Zachary Stieber via The Epoch Times,
Businessman Leon Black, who skipped a deposition regarding his relationship with the late sex offender Jeffrey Epstein, should be held in contempt of Congress, a House of Representatives panel recommended on Sept. 15.
Former Apollo Global Management CEO Leon Black (R) arrives for an interview with the House Oversight Committee in Washington on June 26, 2026. Kevin Dietsch/Getty ImagesThe House Oversight Committee unanimously voted 41-0 to advance a contempt resolution of Black, 75, to the full chamber. House leadership will decide whether to take up the matter in the future.
Black's lawyer did not return a request for comment by the time of publication.
Black was subpoenaed to testify to the committee regarding his relationship with Epstein, who was convicted of soliciting a minor for prostitution and faced sex trafficking charges when he died in federal prison in 2019. The committee also told Black, under subpoena, to provide documents it said were critical to its investigation of Epstein and his network.
"He defied Congress and refused to do either," Rep. James Comer (R-Ky.), committee chairman, said ahead of the vote. "Instead, Mr. Black is hiding behind litigation to delay having to provide answers to the American people. No one is above the law. Mr. Black will be treated the same as anyone else in this investigation, and his actions have consequences."
Black had previously appeared for a voluntary interview, but had refused to answer some questions, prompting the subpoenas.
Black sued the committee after avoiding the subpoenas, telling a court that the subpoenas were invalid because they sought "private information that bears no legitimate connection" to the committee's legislative purpose and would "expose women who value their privacy, who have no known or public connection to Epstein, who bargained for confidentiality and have refused to release it, and who have no ability to protect themselves and their privacy before the Committee."
The case is ongoing.
Black, who co-founded Apollo Global Management, had a "close personal relationship" with Epstein during the time that Epstein was allegedly engaged in sex trafficking, according to a report from the panel. Black also paid Epstein more than $158 million over the years, and potentially more than $170 million, according to the report.
"As a result of his extensive dealings with Epstein, Mr. Black possesses firsthand information regarding the activities of Epstein and Maxwell and their efforts to establish relationships and curry favor with influential individuals while engaged in sex trafficking," the report said. "His testimony may inform the Oversight Committee's consideration of legislative reforms designed to combat the operation of sex-trafficking rings and efforts to shield such activities from scrutiny."
Rep. Robert Garcia (D-Calif.), the top Democrat on the panel, said on Tuesday that lawmakers believe Black "is at the heart of the Epstein network."
"This is a private equity billionaire worth roughly $13 billion dollars. We need to know why Jeffrey Epstein got over 180 million dollars from Mr. Black. We know this money enabled Epstein's activities for years, and we need to know how and if it led to the abuse of women and girls. We need to know about Leon Black and Jeffrey Epstein's financial dealings," he added.
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Tyler Durden Wed, 09/16/2026 - 17:00