Is the BRICS Positioning itself to Challenge US Dominated G7? | Vantage with Palki Sharma

Is the BRICS Positioning itself to Challenge US Dominated G7? | Vantage with Palki Sharma

Is the BRICS challenging the dominance of the G7? This week, Foreign Ministers of BRICS nations met in Russia. They criticised Israel for its war in Gaza. A joint statement from the bloc also slammed protectionism within global supply chains and called for reforms at the World Trade Organisation. Brazil, Russia, India, China and South Africa are BRICS members. Last year, the bloc added five new members. Will the rise of BRICS shrink the influence of the G7? Palki Sharma tells you more.

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G7 Summit | BRICS | India | Israel Hamas War | Saudi Arabia | Egypt | UAE | Iran | Ethiopia | Firstpost | World News | News Live | Vantage | Palki Sharma | News

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Vantage is a ground-breaking news, opinions, and current affairs show from Firstpost. Catering to a global audience, Vantage covers the biggest news stories from a 360-degree perspective, giving viewers a chance to assess the impact of world events through a uniquely Indian lens.

The show is anchored by Palki Sharma, Managing Editor, Firstpost.

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[Music] [Music] [Music] hello and welcome to the special edition of Vantage from Bari soldiers on the streets helicopters buzzing above us frenzy at the media center all of this means just one thing the G7 Summit is officially underway world leaders are here and for the next 2 days they will discuss everything from Ukraine to Gaza to China and even artificial intelligence we’ll tell you what’s on the agenda including what the world leaders will eat meanwhile here in Bari residents are divided over the war in Ukraine because of a gift from Vladimir Putin also why are Russian warships in Cuba is the bricks challenging the G7 why has Pakistan hiked its defense budget again even as its economy struggles and what is the neat controversy that is making headlines in India also Special Report on a Bitcoin ATM here in Bari two of them in fact all of this coming up ahead on the show but first the headlines the UK follows the US announces new sanctions on Russia these curbs Target moscow’s main Stock Exchange it comes a day after Washington announced similar measures Russia’s main stock market suspends dollar and Euro trades following these sanctions Swiss government hit by Cyber attack ahead of the Ukraine peace Summit the attack made several websites unavailable by flooding them with malicious traffic it resulted in minor outages as well this weekend Switzerland will host the first summit on peace in Ukraine the European Union’s Top Court finds Hungary over $200 million it also imposes a daily $1 million penalty on Budapest for not following the Block’s Asylum laws and illegally deporting migrants hungary’s prime minister Victor Oran calls eu’s decision unacceptable in India Ajit doal has been reappointed as the National Security advisor he will be assigned the rank of a cabinet min minister doval is a former director of the intelligence Bureau he is one of prime minister Narendra modi’s most trusted AIDS and has been the National Security advisor since 2014 and Leonel Messi will miss the upcoming Paris Olympics however Messi who turns 37 later this month has not closed the door on taking part in the 2026 World Cup it will be a record-breaking sixth world cup for the etime balondo winner we are in Italy to cover the G7 Summit but we’ve been tracking the developments in Kuwait too the tragedy that took the lives of 49 workers 40 of them were Indians they were killed in a deadly fire they were employed by a private company mostly to do odd jobs more than 50 others have suffered injuries and are in hospital we have some pictures from the aftermath of the tragedy but before showing them you would like to advise viewer discretion these images are [Music] disturbing that’s the building which caught fire it is near Kuwait’s Capital Kuwait City more than 200 workers were crammed into the six-story building they came from different parts of the world Pakistan the Philippines Egypt and Nepal but a majority of them came from India yesterday morning around 4:30 a.m. local time the building caught fire most people inside were sleeping at the time so they were there trapped in the fire and died due to Suffocation some of the bodies have been chared beyond recognition this is one of the worst fire tragedies in Kuwait’s history and it has led to a swift response from New Delhi last evening prime minister Narendra Modi was briefed about what happened he released a statement on social media Prime Minister Modi said that he was saddened by the incident he directed kti vardan Singh to leave for Kuwait that’s India’s new minister of State for external Affairs DNA test uh is underway to identify uh the victims and as soon as the body is identified the K will be informed and our Air Force plane will bring the bodies back New Delhi has opened hotlines for the family members of the victims India is also speaking to local officials in Kuwait to repatriate the Mortal remains of the victims the government of India will compensate their families but it should not end there India must ensure that this is not repeated and for that it must insist on better treatment of its workers overseas especially those living in the Gulf because this incident has once again cast a spotlight on their terrible living conditions many of them travel to the region for work and are engage in odd jobs they work as Masons Carpenters drivers and domestic workers they lack protections from exploitation and abuse the Indians who died in Kuwait could have been protected the early findings of investigators Point towards negligence workers were crammed in tiny spaces and fire safety Norms were clearly ignored the fire probably started in a kitchen on one of the lower floors and then it spread rapidly one of the reasons for that could be this some partitions were built inside the apartments to accommodate as many workers as possible highly inflammable material was was used to build these partitions and this may have helped the fire spread quickly by the time the workers realized what was happening the entire building was on fire they tried to escape but they couldn’t going down the stairs was not an option the fire had spread everywhere some workers tried to exit but they died of Suffocation others tried going to the rooftop but could not because the door was locked so they were trapped inside a burning building it was a desperate situation an eyewitness shared the story of a man who tried to save himself by jumping from the fifth floor he died after hitting the corner of a balcony like I said a very tragic turn of events Kuwait’s leadership is promising tough measures shik Fahad yusu alabah has spoken he’s Kuwait’s Deputy Prime Minister and interior Minister he has blame the owners of this building for the tragedy accusing them of Being Greedy so Kuwait is promising Swift action but what about the others there are Indian workers across the region living in similar conditions there are growing complaints about them being exploited from 2019 to 2023 Indian embassies in the Gulf received more than 48 ,000 complaints 48,000 these were made by Indian workers in countries like bahin Oman Kuwait the UAE qar and Saudi Arabia which means that Indian embassies received at least one complaint by these workers every day for years they were about abusive behavior of the employers violation of workers rights and poor living and working conditions India sens the largest number of Migrant workers overseas by 2020 some 18 million Indians were living abroad and the gulf is a top destination for them by 2022 9 million Indians were living in this region they’re also important for the Indian economy India is the biggest receiver of remittances in the world in 2022 Indian workers overseas sent some $1 billion back to India the gulf countries contributed the biggest share countries like Kuwait are completely run by an Indian Workforce 4.2 million people live in Kuwait Indians make up 21% of the country’s population and nearly 30% of Kuwait’s Workforce clearly these workers are an asset not just for the gulf Nations but also for India and its economy it is time for New Delhi to do more to support them the stage is set the leaders are here the meetings have begun the G7 Summit is officially underway here in Italy this is the 50th G7 Summit it is happening in southern Italy the leaders are staying in sec in a secluded ois a luxury resort called Borgo egnazia it is located in aulia and it’s really far from everything so who’s going to be there the G7 is a group of Seven Nations that were once the biggest economies in the world that’s the United States Japan Germany France Italy Canada and the UK they make up the G7 so you could say it’s a club of rich countries their leaders are all here [Music] [Music] then there are the other guests this list is at the discretion of the host country they can invite whoever they want to usually it’s just a handful of readers but this year prime minister Georgia Malone of Italy has gone all out she’s invited leaders from more than 11 countries including Indian Prime Minister Narendra Modi he will address the G7 Outreach session tomorrow the Prime Minister says that he remains committed to consolidate the India Italy strategic partnership the other invitees include Ukrainian president zalinski Brazilian president Lula D Silva Jordan King Abdullah thei Argentinian president Javier mle Saudi Crown Prince MBS and Pope Francis it’s the first time that a pope will attend a G7 Summit so the guest list is quite long and diverse and that means that there’s a lot on the agenda the discussion start with Africa it’s a top focus at the summit for the host country especially several African leaders will be Pres here and it’s the perfect opportunity for Georgia Malone to engage with them Africa is critical for Italy as it tries to control illegal immigration prime minister Malone has been working closely with African leaders on this she’s been traveling frequently to to the continent in the month of March Malone visited Egypt in April she was in Tunisia and now in June she’s hosting African leaders and pushing for What’s called the mate plan here’s what it’s about Maloney wants to position Italy as an energy Hub between between Europe and Africa she wants to invest in the continent boost growth in Africa which may in turn helps curb immigration it’s an ambitious plan but Maloney is hoping that she can get the backing of the G7 for it second on the agenda is the Gaza War Israel’s war will dominate most conversations here but the G7 may not do very much about it so expect words not action they’ve already backed the US drafted peace plan and that’s all that they want to do for now the other war will get precedence here and that is the war in Ukraine the summit has two sessions dedicated to this war president zilinski has been pushing for more Western aid but I don’t think he’ll have to really ask here because it seems that the G7 has already agreed to lend Ukraine $50 billion this money will come from Russian assets as we’ve been telling you the Russian Central Bank has assets both in Russia and outside it has money held in Banks and financial institutions outside Russia now when the war with Ukraine broke out the West froze those Russ Russian assets they were immobilized mosco could no longer access them but the point is that this money still belongs to Russia the West cannot touch it what they can do is use the profits generated by these assets and they want to use this money to Aid Ukraine there will also be discussions on migration Economic Security and even artificial intelligence a final statement will come on Saturday but it won’t be binding it’s more like a guide an indication of how the group thinks but does it even matter is the G7 still significant you see the Group of Seven was founded in 1975 back then it was a group of the world’s seven biggest economies they made up for 70% of the world’s GDP so it was the group with the deepest Pockets Russia joined it in 1998 and it became the G8 but that was shortlived because Moscow was thrown out in 2014 after the invasion of Crimea so they were back to G7 in 2014 now for long it was like the cool table in the school cafeteria it’s where everyone wanted to sit but things have changed in the last decade the significance of the G7 has waned right now it makes up for 40% of the global GDP and only 10% of the global population which is not very good representation plus they have competition from other groups like The Bricks and G20 both of them represent more countries and bigger economies so is the G7 still the big economic club that it claims to be or is it just a relic of the past it’s something for the group to think about as they meet over the next two days a lot of issues will be discussed during this G7 Summit and one of the major topics would be China the West has a number of issues with Beijing and it seems that they have finally decided to take a stand it’s not just some simple rebuke this time the West seems to have launched a multi-dimensional attack on China on the Chinese economy and their diplomatic aggression basically just short of an actual physical confrontation a number of attacks in fact have been launched back to back let’s start with the eu’s move the commission has also predisclosure duties it would impose on Imports of battery electric vehicles from China the European Union is imposing tariffs on Chinese electric vehicles these tariffs will range from about 177% to a whopping 38% major Chinese companies will face these tariffs like byd saic Gil and others Chinese Eves have been gaining ground in the European Union in 2019 their market share was just 1% but now it’s closer to 8% the reason for this this growth was a cheap prices Chinese EVS typically cost 20% less than the European ones so the EU has decided to nullify China’s price Advantage as you can imagine Beijing is not happy about this what I want to emphasize is that this anti-subsidy investigation is a typical case of protectionism China will take all necessary measures to firmly Safeguard it legitimate rights and interests Beijing has issued a warning the EU tariffs could start a chain reaction possibly a trade War but the Europeans will have support from their biggest backer and that is the United States of America Washington had announced a similar tariff hike last month us tariffs on Chinese EVS were increased to 100% so Europe still lags behind but it’s a clear signal that the West is united in its opposition to China so that was one Battlefront Chinese electric vehicles the next one is Advanced computer chips the US has been fighting a chip war with China since 2022 it has been trying to restrict beijing’s access to Advanced chips like the ones used to power artificial intelligence technology it seems the US is planning to up the ante it is planning a new round of restrictions not just on americanmade chips but also on chips made using American Technology there’s a technology called gate all around P or GAA it is used to improve chip performance and reduce power consumption and this technology is patented so the US wants to block the exports of anything made using this Tech it would be another blow to China’s chip sector marking an escalation in the US China Chip War and that is the second prong of the western attack Advanced computer chips the third prong is Less Direct it involves sanctions against Russia the US is planning more sanctions and this time Chinese firms will become collateral damage the US believes that China is helping Russia evade sanctions it says Chinese firms are sending microchips drone parts and weapon components to Russia so a few dozen Chinese firms were sanctioned yesterday this won’t stop the evasion though but it does send a message Biden is sanctioning China on the eve of the G7 Summit he will want the EU to follow suit and if Europe joins in on the sanctions Beijing will have to deal with another Battlefront so Eves chips and sanctions these are the West’s economic targets but the US and Canada have begun a diplomatic assault as well after decades they’re Reviving the issue of Tibet yesterday the US Congress passed a bill it urges Beijing to re-engage with the Dalai Lama to find a resolution to the China Tibet dispute the American Bill comes on the heels of a Canadian one the Canadian parliament passed a motion on Monday they unanimously supported the Tibetan people’s right to self-determination both these acts are symbolic Canada and the US cannot force China to free Tibet but bringing up the issue could make China uncomfortable and throw some light on beijing’s imperialistic behavior that is another attack the fourth in a few days it shows that the West is trying to Corner Beijing to apply pressure but will it work will Beijing back down with a multi-pronged attack I guess we’ll have to wait and see one of the key issues at the G7 will be Russia a lot of people thought that Georgia Malone would be soft on Putin but she has turned out to be a staunt western Ally just ahead of the summit Italy unveiled a new military package for Ukraine but here in Bari the sentiment is mixed and a big reason for that is Santa Claus not the one that you’re thinking about this is a fourth Century Saint who inspired the modern day Santa Claus his remains are buried right here in a basilica in Bari and right next to it is a gift from Vladimir Putin how is Bari com coming to terms with this contrasting reality how is Bari related to Russia and Putin our next report tells you when I say Santa Claus what is it that comes to your mind red dress long white beard maybe a few reindeers well that’s the marketed version of it the real Santa Claus is right here in Bari and today we are heading to his place of burial the calm Mediterranean SE on one side the old Bari town on the other and nestled in between is this Basilica it is dedicated to St Nicholas a Christian Saint the Santa Claus you know is based on him St Nicholas was born in the 4th Century in present day Turkey as a Christian Saint he became famous for secretly giving gifts especially to poor children that’s how St Nicholas became Santa Claus in this part of the world in the mediterranian he’s a very important religious figure thousands of Christians visit this Basilica every day to offer prayers inside it are the remains of St Nicholas around a thousand years back Turkish Sailors stole them from the home country and brought them here and this has become an important religious symbol the locals here love him St Nicholas bring brings in a lot of tourists he’s also a global symbol for peace and forgiveness sort of like an ambassador for bari statues of St Nicholas are common here so is the tradition of keeping his photo inside your wallet the belief is St Nicholas is watching over you so that’s Ambassador plus Guardian Angel a lot of pressure for one Saint now you can add politics to the mix Christianity is said to have three main branches Catholic Protestant and Orthodox the Catholic church is very powerful in Italy it is headed by the Pope in the Vatican and the Orthodox most of them are in East European nations like Russia Ukraine and Bulgaria Bari has been a meeting point for these branches this Basilica itself is a Roman Catholic institution but St Nicholas is revered by the Orthodox Christians too so once a week his Crypt is open to them they can go in do their own Orthodox rituals and pay their respects in 2007 one such Orthodox Christian from Russia visited Bari Vladimir Putin in Russia St Nicholas is probably the most important Saint he said to have rescued Russia multiple times from crisis which is why Putin came here as president he’s built a close alliance with Russia’s Orthodox church it’s a symbiotic relationship ship Putin backs the Orthodox church the church offers him legitimacy but 2007 wasn’t Putin’s first interaction with Bari that happened many years ago this is a St Nicholas statue right outside the Basilica and next to it you can see a plaque it has gotten dark around the edges it’s an old one but if you look closely you can still make out this is a letter of friendship and cooperation to the people of Bari and here is a signature of Wladimir Putin this is what it says Vladimir Putin the Russian president gifted this statue to the people of Bari in the year 2003 and with it he wrote a letter of friendship which was then converted into a plaque for years no one really cared about it but now it has become a politically charged issue because Italy is firmly in Ukraine’s Corner in the war against Russia and a lot of people think that if not the statue at least The Spar signed by Putin should be removed the chorus is quite strong in 2022 a petition was drafted to remove the plug around 12,000 locals signed it but the town mayor said no he says history cannot be cancelled St Nicholas is in our hearts for us it is culture on top of faith and religion but St Nicholas is our patron saint so it will never happen that’s for sure I mean we won’t make it happen Roman Catholics and Orthodox Christians have many differences often bitter ones but Bari stood as a symbol of Hope in 2017 the pope announced a very important decision he decided to send parts of St Nicholas’s remains to Russia specifically his ribs you wouldn’t believe the joy in Russia thousands skewed up outside a church in Moscow they waited hours to catch a glimpse of the relics an event like this does not happen every year or even every decade when I left the church I had a feeling that I wasn’t walking on the ground I was just floating it was an amazing feeling I feel very good and comfortable in my soul Putin too arrived at the church he kissed the glass case holding the remains of St Nicholas it was indeed a show of cooperation but the in Ukraine has changed at all not only has it pitted Roman Catholics against Orthodox Christians it has also pitted barans against barians this city has long been Italy’s gateway to the east as a result a lot of East Europeans live here ukrainians Russians slovenians and bulgarians they too are divided over the war some are silent on The Invasion others are vocal in condemning Vladimir Putin it’s a sad turn of events for a city that once stood for a lot more we talking about two power centers of Christianity the Roman Catholic Church of Italy and the Orthodox Church of Russia this city and this Basilica gave hope of cooperation between these two power centers in fact the pope allowed some of the remains of St Nicholas to be taken to Russia in the last decade sort of like a Goodwill gesture but now politics has interfered Putin is no longer welcoming Bari or anywhere in Europe meanwhile there’s a buzz around here that Ukrainian president zilinski may visit now speaking of Russia Moscow has made a power move on the other side of the world yesterday some Russian ships arrived in Cuba Russian warships there was one guided missile frigate the Admiral gorko it’s the lead ship of an entire class of frigs armed with caliber Cruise Miss missiles ziron Hypersonic missiles and Onyx anti-ship missiles it arrived in the Havana Port Yesterday flanked by a tugboat and a fuel ship so a Russian frigate armed to the teeth docked in Cuba a country that the US has embargoed since 1958 you heard that right 1958 66 years it is the longest trade embargo in modern history so it’s safe to say that Cuba and the US aren’t on good terms and now a Russian ship has docked in Havana it’s a signal from Putin that Russia can Walt into America’s backyard anytime it wants to and the frigate wasn’t even the real message Putin’s big warning cruised in a little later half submerged Cuban and Russian naval Flags fluttering in the wind and a contingent of soldiers on the deck it was a Russian nuclear powered submarine the Kazan Cuba greeted The Vessel with a cannon salute the residents of Havana had lined up to get a glimpse of the ships especially the submarines I saw it a submarine and I said wow and I took a picture I have never seen a submarine in Havana in my life it impresses me a little because I have never seen something so close such a large ship of that magnitude the Cubans were clearly impressed but Putin isn’t doing this to capture their attention his Target is a little to the north barely 160 km away away from Cuba that is where Florida begins which means that Putin has just sent his warships to America’s doorstep this comes weeks after an American provocation the US recently gave Ukraine a green light it allowed Kiev to use American weapons to strike Russian territory Putin said that it was an escalation and now he has responded by sending warships to Cuba this has some Americans worried hopefully this is not the beginning of something that could be unpleasant for Humanity because we are the ones in the middle we are the ones who pay the highest price for the conflicts and disagreements that one group has with the other group and in the end they stay safe because they send war and we are the ones who pay a high price Washington is trying to downplay this incident they say this keeps happening that Russia keeps sending ships to Cuba which is partly true but while Russian ships do keep going to Cuba Moscow hasn’t sent a submarine before and this time there’s a nuclear powered nuclear capable Russian submarine in Cuba Washington says the submarine is not carrying nukes Cuba was also quick to clarify this which is to be expected because this country has been in the situation before at the frontier of a war between Washington and Moscow I’m talking about the Cuban Missile Crisis back in 1962 Cuba was the site of a showdown a showdown between the Soviet Union and the US the previous year in 1961 the US had placed nuclear weapons in Italy and turkey it was a provocation so the Soviet Union retaliated by preparing to place nukes in Cuba in 1962 us spy planes captured the preparations Washington could not have that but they could not attack either instead they decided to blockade Cuba the Americans sent out their warships but the Soviets blocked their path so Soviet and American vessels were face to face and the world was minutes away from an allout nuclear war eventually both sides backed off that in a nutshell was the Cuban Missile Crisis Cuba was about to be the flash point for a nuclear war so this country has a symbolic importance and now Putin has sent his warships to Havana again including a nuclear capable submarine which is a loud warning to the US Russia is telling them that its patience is running out but when will the US listen or will it continue to egg Ukraine on the G7 Summit is a test for its leadership can they solve the world’s biggest problems or will they let them Fester again the success of this Summit hinges on this question and there’s a reason why I say this some alternatives to the G7 are punching above their weight like bricks the group of leading emerging economies this week the foreign minister of bricks Nations met they met in Russia Indian diplomats attended the meeting a joint statement was released the brics countries are sending a message to Israel on its Gaza offensive they want Israel to stop the war the bricks has condemned Israel’s operations in Rafa they’re concerned about the increasing attacks the growing death toll and the humanitarian crisis due to the war the brics Nations have slammed Israel for what they call a blatant disregard of international law and they they support full membership of Palestine at the United Nations moreover the statement uses the term occupied and this choice of words is significant because it points it it paints Israel as the occupier this is a sweeping criticism of Israel’s war more importantly India has signed off on this statement along with the rest of the bricks members India has signed which is again quite significant because so far India had walked a fine line balancing both the interests of Israel and Palestinians when the Hamas attacked Israel New Delhi called a terrorist attack but in the same breath India backed the two-state solution where Israel and Palestine coexist just a few days ago New Delhi had maintained the same balance while discussing the Israeli attacks on Rafa the heartbreaking loss of Civilian lives in the displacement camp in Rafa is a matter of deep concern for us we also note that the Israeli side has already accepted responsibility for it as a tragic incident but in Russia India sided firm with the bricks and endorse the use of harsh language for Israel does this mean a shift in India’s policy well not exactly but it does show how the developing World Views Israel’s war in Gaza they want it to end soon the bricks made progress on other fronts as well they discussed using their native currencies for trade they challenge protectionism in global trade and they called for a reform of the World Trade Organization bricks nations want special treatment for developing nations at the WTO by raising these issues the bricks is taking an aim at the west and challenging the G7 which is also interesting because barring Russia and China the other original bricks members have all been invited to the G7 Summit in Italy South Africa will skip due to domestic reasons but India and Brazil are attending nonetheless bricks is carefully positioning itself last year they surpassed the G7 and GDP its five original members Brazil Russia India China South Africa contributed more to the global GDP this is on a purchasing power parity basis this is a measure of economic productivity and living standards now going by this report the share of bricks Nation stood at over 31% what about the G7 the five bricks countries together contribute nearly 31.5% of the global GDP compared to 30.7% by G7 countries their share was around 30% now this year the bricks has gotten bigger it has added five new members that is Saudi Arabia Egypt the UAE Iran and Ethiopia this newly expanded bricks repr resents over 3 and A2 billion people and their combined economies are worth more than $28 trillion which is about 28% of the world’s economy these numbers CH challenge the economic influence and positioning of the G7 it doesn’t represent a large section of the world’s population and it’s not being able to solve major Global issues take the pandemic for instance the G7 promised to deliver 1 billion shots to the world instead they kept most of the vaccines for themselves they they did not share the supply this holding may have led to deaths at least 600,000 lives could have been saved had the vaccines come on time the G7 has failed to deliver on climate change as well it promised to provide $100 billion per year for the world’s transition away from carbon fuels so far they haven’t paid up now they seem to be heading towards another failure recently the G7 leaders endorsed Biden’s truth plan for Gaza but it has failed to gain traction the efforts of bricks leaders though are getting attention the Palestinians have welcomed the bricks statement on the Gaza war that was to be expected of course one of their diplomats has thanked the bricks in India for taking a stand against Israel so here’s where we are at the G7 are neither the richest nor the most influential which again is a point to ponder for the leadership cryptocurrency was a big Topic at last year’s G7 Summit and this year barely a mention of it crypto’s for has been as rapid as its rise today Bitcoin prices are rising but the dreams of using it as a currency have been dashed here in Bari we found evidence of it this city has two Bitcoin ATMs both were open with much fanfare during the pandemic but both are largely unused right now so we decided to find these elusive Bitcoin ATMs to understand what Italy’s crypto scene looks like here’s a report today we are searching for an ATM before you ask doesn’t this stuff happen when the camera is off hold on this isn’t just any ATM this one is designated for cryptocurrencies there are thousands of crypto ATMs in the world but most of them are located in the United States the headquarters of all dubious ideas Bari doesn’t fit that bill this is not a Haven for Tech Bros or eccentric billionaires why then does Bari have not one but two crypto ATMs not sure if I should say expected or unexpected the first Bitcoin ATM was set up in 2020 at a financial center but later it was moved to this location a cannabis store now cannabis is not legal for recreational use in this country but holding or possessing it is not illegal either and that is the tricky thing about cryptocurrency people use it to buy things that they cannot buy with cash maybe drugs or other illegal items let’s head inside and find out nothing much to say here it’s a cannabis store in southern Italy everything here is cannabis themed from clothes to pouches to more discrete items but on the billing table you see this small machine an ATM to buy Bitcoin and other cryptocurrencies normally an ATM connects to your bank account this one doesn’t it connects to your digital crypto wallet now there are two important numbers to note here one is your digital crypto wallet which is a bit like your bank account the second is your private key which you enter to transfer or buy crypto and this machine has certain limits a minimum of €20 per day and a maximum of 1,995 per day so you put in your cash you enter your private key and the Machine does the rest it converts your money into crypto let’s talk rules now the European Union does regulate cryptocurrency IES they have a set of laws called Mica markets in crypto assets regulation it covers consumer protection asset classification and Market abuse Italy too has updated its cryptocurrency rules it is perfectly legal to buy and sell cryptocurrencies like Bitcoin in Italy there is only one condition you must go VI registered crypto markets or agencies this ATM is operated by a Lithuanian crypto service it’s called crypto local ATM I’m sure that bought into the crypto craze of the pandemic but as you can see it’s not exactly buzzing with people the shopkeeper says the ATM is rarely used they accept Bitcoin on their website but not for direct sales plus people are worried about being scammed no worries though there’s another crypto ATM in Bari maybe we’ll have better luck there this one is definitely bigger than the first you can’t miss the big black board that screams Bitcoin inside things get interesting the ATM machine is placed inside something that can only be described as a cage iron bars separate you from the outside on the screen is the prevailing Bitcoin rate a whopping € 62,000 after multiple crashes in the last few years Bitcoin is rising Again by has around 13 businesses that accept Bitcoin Rome has more than 120 such businesses some Italian Giants tried using it as a method of payment like Ferrari the legendary Italian car maker started accepting Bitcoin last year but payments remain extremely rare the problem doesn’t seem to be acceptance around 8% Italians say that they have bought some sort of cryptocurrency the problem seems to be usage and reliability cryptocurrencies are too volatile to be used for daily transactions you must be techsavvy to buy sell or exchange crypto a lot of people thought that cryptocurrency is the next big thing but that bubble has been burst there have been a lot of crypto scans in the US and even here in Italy these ATMs are on the radar of the financial Watch Dogs for money laundering uh ATMs like these are an easy way to convert your black money into Bitcoin or any other kind of cryptocurrency and we told you about the mafia problem in this part of Italy yesterday so a free laundering service is the last thing that they need what about Investments a lot of people buy Bitcoin as an asset not as a currency well there’s tax on that Italy has slapped a 26% tax on the gains made from cryptocurrency zari’s crypto problem is much like the world’s the pandemic triggered a lot of interest which led to rapid crypto growth in bari’s case two ATMs in no time but then came a dose of reality even in the small corner of Italy the crypto bubble is bursting now let’s turn our attention to Pakistan South Asia’s most fiscally irresponsible Nation that’s not an easy title to win but Pakistan does it year after year one way or another Islamabad finds a way to go bust then they run to China the gulf Nations or the international monetary fund asking for a bailout how does this keep happening year after year because the Pakistani government keeps blowing away money on its bloated military and this year it’s no different Pakistan just released its new budget and it has increased its military expenditure by whopping 17.6% 2.1 trillion rupees will be provided for defense expenditure 839 billion rupees for civil Administration 1,4 billion rupees will be provided for pension expenditures and 1,363 billion rupees will be allocated as subsidy on electricity gas and other sectors that was Pakistan’s Finance Minister Mohammad orze he presented Pakistan’s budget yesterday am made a chorus of Boo from opposition lawmakers he said the Pakistani military will be getting more than 2.1 trillion Pakistani Rupees this year which is about 6.15 billion US it’s an increase of more than 177% last year the military got about 1.8 trillion Pakistani Rupees Pakistan is in an economic rupt listen to the Finance Minister again for the fiscal year 20242 there is an expected 3.6% economic growth Target inflation is projected at 12% he’s expecting low growth and high inflation the country is negotiating a loan with the IMF they want an extended fund facility worth $6 to8 billion to get this IMF deal Pakistan is preparing to squeeze its taxpayers dry they want Revenue collection to be increased by 40% which is at all ask and impossible without bleeding the average citizen amid this Bleak Outlook Pakistan is planning to increase military spending by more than 177% so obviously the move will draw criticism Islamabad knows this so it has tried to cover its tracks the budget itself is absurd Pakistan’s government is showing an overall expenditure increase of 30% that is about $15 billion more than last year it’s unrealistic for a country that is struggling financially but Pakistan has declared this in its budget and because of the inflated numbers the Pakistani military share seems small the 177% increase is hidden amid the bloated expense figure then there are other accounting tricks Pakistan’s military budget does not include military pensions the pension amount is 662 billion rupees that is more than $2 billion us but this won’t come out of the military budget a different government department will pay military pensions in Pakistan similar accounting tricks have been used for major military purchases like nuclear development that funding comes from a different Source not the military budget Pakistan does this intentionally to hide the real amount of military spending from its citizens now you may wonder why is the Pakistan government doing this why is it lying to its citizens taxing them dry all to feed its bloated military well you must understand that Pakistan is not some normal country with an army it’s a military establishment that masquerades as a country the Pakistani army controls all the strings including the pur strings it will keep taking a line share of the budget and hiding its true expenses from the public while squeezing them dry that’s the only thing the people of Pakistan should expect from this and every other budget it seems now let’s talk about neit National eligibility come Entrance Test so neit neet it’s the only entrance exam for undergraduate medical courses in India so if you want to get into a medical college you will have to appear for it every year hundreds of thousands of students appear for this test and it’s quite difficult to crack but this year it got even tougher for the students there have been allegations of paper leak unfair marking and Grace marks being awarded without consideration it has led to an uproar across India and the agency conducting the test is under Fire so what is this Fiasco about and what will happen to the 2.4 million student students who appeared for this exam in 2024 our next report tells you May 5th was an important day for 2.4 million students here in India it was the day of the neat the national eligibility come Entrance Test for aspiring medical students in the country this is the Beall and endall this is the test they must crack if they want to become a doctor here in India now the pattern of the test is quite simple there are two 200 mcqs that’s multiple choice questions candidates need to answer 180 of them the total marks for the entire test is 720 so that is the highest score you can get correct answers get you four marks if an answer is wrong a mark is deducted unanswered questions don’t impact the score but if you choose multiple answers marks are deducted which brings us to the controversy 67 students got the perfect score that’s 720 marks out of these eight students were from the same Exam Center so that raised suspicion a few of them even got marks like 718 or 719 so questions were raised over that as well plus there were allegations of a paper leak in Rajasthan students were apparently given the paper with pre-marked answers but that’s not all then there was the issue of Grace marks it was awarded to 1563 students this was for the loss of time due to multiple reasons this became another point of contention the controversy grew so big that the matter reached the Supreme Court students filed petitions against the NTA that’s the national testing agency it’s the body that conducts this exam they sought the cancellation of the exam on grounds of question paper leaks and other malpractices today the top Court heard the matter it has led to the scrapping of the grace marks awarded by the NTA the center said the process was wrong and it now leaves the 1563 students with two choices they can either retake the test or forgo the compensatory Grace marks they got and get a new ranking but the entire controversy has raised a few questions this is one of the biggest medical exams in the country it’s an exam that determines the fate of millions so why can’t the process be more transparent many questioned why the exam can’t be held online like other engineering exams in India technology could lead to more transparency in the process either way this controversy has raised questions over the Integrity of the neat and is unlikely to die down even with a retest now coming back to the G7 Summit with diplomacy on the menu the leaders will have plenty on their plates quite literally prime minister Georgia Malone is seizing this opportunity to showcase the dining prowess of Italy the menu is a gastronomical journey from the south of Italy to the north there are some Classics like lasagna and lobster rotto then there are unusual combinations like tomato flavored ice cream this is an opportunity for Italy to Showcase its cultural richness and pair it with not only its famous wine but also inclusivity after all leaders from more than 18 Nations will be attending the summit over the years food has played a powerful role in diplomacy so how have other G7 hosts fared have some leaders chosen the menu in bad taste here’s a report the G7 Summit is officially underway leaders from several Nations will spend the next few days in Italy’s apulia this includes the G7 of course or the Group of Seven Nations that’s the US Japan Germany France Italy Canada and the UK and along with them there will be guests from over 11 countries there’s a lot on the agenda it’s expected that world leaders will be negotiating difficult situations working long hours and spending a lot of time talking to people in short it’s going to get busy but no matter what like anyone else the leaders will have to eat and like most diplomatic getto togethers across centuries food is going to play a crucial role at this Summit which is why prime minister Georgia Malone is going all out with gastro diplomacy so what’s on the menu a journey to Italy it begins from the south with crunchy bread and gold leaf from Campana fish soup from the Adriatic blue lobster Roto and burgo from Calabria and tomato ice cream for dessert to most of us it sounds unusual but this ice cream is a hit in Italy over the next few days the menu will shift with flavors from the north of Italy the star of the show is the crunchy pot of lasagna the signature dish is exactly what the name suggests with slightly overcooked corners of the lasagna then there’s a little finger tortellino from Mona some may say what holds the menu together is bread a lot of attention is being paid to it and a lot of room has been created for meat as well it has directly been sourced from pedm this menu offering food in Italy’s favorite green white and red colors has been designed by masimo botura a top Italian chef who has been awarded seven Michelin stars boura is clearly being experimental because the combinations proposed for the G7 Summit are not exactly classic the food will be served with some of Italy’s best wines some Italian suier may turn up their noses on the pairings but these wines are loved by foreigners after all gastro diplomacy is complicated business the menu must focus on conveying Italian values it should represent the country biodiversity and cultural richness along with a side of inclusivity after all leaders and politicians from across the world will have a go at it for instance at the G7 Summit last year in Japan leaders were treated to a belt expanding tour the menu showcased the best of Japanese dining including Japanese oysters heer beef and sea urchins but Japan didn’t always get it right in 1992 when then US President George Bush visited Japan he was offered raw salmon with caviar he then made history by becoming the first sitting president to vomit on the Prime Minister of Japan when it comes to food diplomacy the stakes are always high clearly Italy has a lot on its plate and now it’s time for Ved shots in images that tell the story while the G7 Summit is underway here in Italy lawmakers brawl in the parliament over reforms in the US a person rafts down flooded roads in Florida amid torrential rains in Colorado a rescue team freeze a dog trapped for 3 hours in a house vent and finally we’re taking you back in history on this day in the year 1900 the Boxer Rebellion began in China the boxers were a resistance group their primary aim was to evict all the Europeans from China but their real motive was to occupy of China to establish a German Colony we’re leaving you on that note thanks for watching we will see you tomorrow [Applause] see right here you see him you’re right on he’s not coming up come on come on it’s okay it’s [Music] fan of Italy’s famous Cuisine well we are serving it with a side of diplomacy as the G7 leaders gather in southern Italy Vantage is taking you to the heart of the action what’s the agenda who is invited and how is Italy preparing for it catch the special edition of Vantage throughout this week only on first post fan of Italy’s Cuisine well we are serving it with a side of diplomacy as G7 leaders gather in southern Italy Vantage is taking you to the heart of the action what’s the agenda who’s invited and how is Italy preparing for it catch the special edition of Vantage throughout this week only on first post e