President Donald Trump and his adviser Elon Musk's campaign to radically cut back the U.S. bureaucracy spread on Friday, with thousands of workers who handle everything from securing the nation's nuclear weapons to caring for military veterans losing their jobs.

Dollarization, or in the case of some Eastern European countries euroization, is an economic occurrence when foreign currency is used in parallel with the domestic currency. There are various degrees of dollarization/euroization. The reasons for this phenomenon are country-specific, but in most cases, the root cause is the instability of the domestic currency.

As expected, Russian President Vladimir Putin on Tuesday addressed an annual business summit of world leaders gathered in South Africa. But this time, the Russian leader delivered his remarks with an altered voice.

Putin appeared via a prerecorded video at a meeting for a grouping of the economies of Brazil, Russia, India, China, and South Africa (BRICS) in Johannesburg, where he discussed the affairs of the business council in an altered, deep voice.

The BRICS group of major emerging economies - Brazil, Russia, India, China and South Africa - will hold its 15th heads of state and government summit in Johannesburg between Aug. 22 and Aug. 24.

Here are some key facts about the bloc and its members.

WHAT IS BRICS?

The acronym BRIC, which did not initially include South Africa, was coined in 2001 by then Goldman Sachs chief economist Jim O'Neill in a research paper that underlined the growth potential of Brazil, Russia, India and China.

Chinese President Xi Jinping called Brics a “constructive force” that contributes to global economic growth while lauding Beijing’s ties with Johannesburg, ahead of the bloc’s annual summit that begins on Tuesday.

Xi made the remarks after arriving in Johannesburg on Monday night for the meeting of emerging economies – Brazil, Russia, India, China and South Africa. He said China’s relations with South Africa would inject greater stability into a “turbulent world”.

The leaders from the five-member group of nations known as BRICS — Brazil, Russia, India, China and South Africa — are beginning a three-day summit in Johannesburg on Tuesday, where they are discussing expanding the club that harbors ambitions of becoming a geopolitical alternative to Western-led forums like the Group of 7.

The latest gathering of leaders has garnered a level of international interest rarely seen since the group was first formed 14 years ago.

The possible establishment of a currency to rival the U.S. dollar won't be discussed at the 15th summit of the BRICS countries that begins in Johannesburg on Aug. 22, South African government officials have told The Epoch Times.

However, this week’s meeting will herald the first step toward the establishment of a gold-backed BRICS currency designed to end what the bloc terms “U.S. dominance of global finance structures,” according to some analysts.

The next test of whether top U.S. adversaries can erode its role as the leading global superpower will come in the form of a major diplomatic confab in South Africa. 

The Chinese and Iranian foreign ministers have spoken ahead of Tuesday’s Brics summit in Johannesburg, where Tehran is seeking to become the sixth member of the bloc.

During Sunday’s phone conversation, Iran’s Hossein Amir-Abdollahian told his Chinese counterpart Wang Yi that Tehran hoped to strengthen cooperation with Beijing in regional and international affairs