Sputnik International (en)

Russia joins BRICS’ progressive taxation: How high are income taxes now? The recent reform proposed by the Russian Finance Ministry introduces a progressive system of taxation. Just like in other BRICS countries, people with a lower income will pay less taxes than those with a higher one. How does it work in the bloc’s nations? 🇷🇺Russia Personal income tax: remains flat at the level of 13% for the majority of Russians who make up to $27,000 a year. Tax payers with incomes between $27,000 and $56,200 pay 15%. The highest income tax of 22% is for those making over $562,000. Tax deductions: for low-income families with children; for investors; reimbursement for expenses on healthcare and education. 🇨🇳China Personal income tax: poorer citizens with incomes of less than $5,040 a year pay a “symbolic” tax of 3%. For incomes between $5,040 and $21,000 the rate is 10%. For those with incomes of $21,000-$42,000 a year it is 20%. For those above $186,000 a year, tax reaches 45%. Tax deductions: expenses on rent, education and care for old parents are not taxed 🇮🇳India Personal income tax: for people making between $3,600 and $14,400 a year there are progressive tax rates of 5%, 10% and 15%. Having reached the level of $14,400, people start paying 20% tax. Tax deductions: expenses on education for children and mortgages. 🇧🇷Brazil Income tax: incomes of up to $5,200 are not taxable. The lowest tax for the poor is 7.5%, there are also rates of 15% and 22.5%. For people who make more than $11,000 a year (the majority) the rate is 27.5%. A relatively high tax rate is compensated by deductions. Deductions: expenses on education for children, on healthcare and payments to pension funds. 🇿🇦South Africa Income tax: ranges from 18% to 45%, depending on the income. Income below $12,800 is taxed by a 18% rate. Tax deductions: for people over 65 and 75 years of age, smaller amounts of their incomes are taxed. 📌Subscribe to @SputnikInt

In anticipation of SPIEF 2024: We bring you Putin’s best statements from last year What can we expect from Vladimir Putin at the forum this year? Which topics will the president pay special attention to? Write your guesses in the comments👇 📌Subscribe to @SputnikInt

Houthis’ new ballistic rocket strike on Israel ‘largely demonstrative in nature’ – analyst The Houthis are increasing their capabilities in rocket science, but they are very far from the heights of technological progress, while launches against Israel are more of a demonstrative nature, Igor Korotchenko, a Russian military analyst, tells Sputnik. Yemen-based Houthi fighters said on Tuesday they had used the 'Palestine' rocket for the first time in an attack on the port city of Eilat in southern Israel. Houthi military spokesperson Yahya Saree insisted that the rocket had “successfully achieved it objective,” despite the Israel Defense Forces claiming they had intercepted “a missile in the skies over the Red Sea.” The Palestine rocket is a ballistic surface-to-surface missile that the Houthis had made on their own, Xinhua has reported. It uses projectile motion to deliver its warhead on a target and is powered only during relatively brief periods of the flight.

The rocket is “obviously better [in terms of combat capabilities] than the [unsophisticated] Qassam shells that the Palestinians are firing at Israel,” Korotchenko points out.

The Houthis have achieved certain success and continue to demonstrate their abilities to block the passage for merchant vessels of particular countries through the Gulf of Aden and the Red Sea, the military analyst argues. However, their rocket attacks on Israel are more kind of a "foreign policy operation, propaganda, and forceful demonstration," he concludes. 📌Subscribe to @SputnikInt

No man's war: Australia struggles to recruit soldiers, ready to hire foreigners Australian authorities are loosening recruitment criteria and will even allow foreigners to join the ranks of the military to address personnel shortages, according to a report by Bloomberg. Permanent residents who have lived in Australia for 12 months will be allowed to enlist. Currently, Australian defense forces are experiencing a shortfall of 4,400 troops, while the government plans to have 80,000 military personnel on full-time service by 2040, adding more than a quarter. It seems that military service is not very popular in Australia - but why? The most obvious answer is an extremely competitive job market - why bother enlisting when there is an opportunity to earn a higher salary in a friendlier environment. This notion is supported by the fact that after the temporary negative impact of the COVID pandemic on employment figures, Australians were more eager to join the military ranks. However, after the economic recovery began, experienced specialists quickly left the armed forces. The Australian government plans to strengthen its military in the wake of the alleged "China threat". In September 2021, the UK and US persuaded Australia to form the AUKUS trilateral security network and convinced its government to buy a batch of nuclear-powered submarines armed with conventional weapons (which caused a diplomatic conflict between Canberra and Paris, as Australia had to forgo the French submarines). Commenting on the establishment of the pact, experts stressed that Washington is using Australia to maintain American hegemony in the Asia-Pacific region, virtually dragging the whole continent into the conflict it has nothing to do with. 📌Subscribe to @SputnikInt

What’s special about the new Kalashnikov Granat-4 drone? An upgraded version of the Granat-4 drone has entered mass production, Russia’s legendary military manufacturer announced. The UAV is widely used in the special military operation for round-the-clock air reconnaissance and high-precision targeting. The Kalashnikov group noted that, unlike its predecessor, the new Granat-4 is capable of identifying targets for subsequent strikes with such precision-guided munitions as Krasnopol, Kitolov, and Gran. Granat-4 is specifically designed for radio monitoring and aerial surveillance of the terrain using a built-in digital camera, video recorder, active monitoring equipment, and thermal imager in near real time. Key technical characteristics of the Granat-4 drone: ▪️dual axis gyro stabilized platform; ▪️cameras with visible and infrared range; ▪️laser rangefinder-pointer of up to 3 km; ▪️6 hour flight time; ▪️70 km flying distance; ▪️100 km/h cruising flight speed ▪️500-2,000 m operating altitude range. 📌Subscribe to @SputnikInt

NATO cobbling together scheme to move troops from US to Europe – reports The US-led military bloc is preparing land corridors that would enable US troops to rush to the frontlines in the event of a European war, the Telegraph reported. The move seeks to stave off a potential “Russian attack.” In theory, US soldiers could arrive at one of five designated ports and then be transported along predetermined logistics routes on the continent. According to the plans, American forces would land in the Netherlands and then be taken to Poland via Germany by train. Other potential options include utilizing ports in the Balkans, Norway, Sweden, Finland, Italy, Greece, and Turkiye.

“In these corridors, national militaries will not be restricted by local regulations and will be free to transport consignments without normal restrictions,” the report said.

The notion of a war with Russia in Europe appears to be fueled by militaristic hysteria. Russian President Vladimir Putin has made it clear that Moscow has no intention of attacking NATO nations, and the alliance has stated that it would not deploy its forces in Ukraine. Additionally, NATO Secretary-General Jens Stoltenberg has poured cold water on the aggressive suggestions made by French President Emmanuel Macron, indicating that there will be “no boots on the ground” in Ukraine. The conflict in Ukraine has highlighted the vulnerability of Kiev's logistics bases to Russia’s pinpoint strikes. According to Lieutenant General Alexander Sollfrank, Commander of NATO's Joint Support and Enabling Command (JSEC), larger bases, like those seen in Afghanistan or Iraq, are no longer feasible as they can be targeted and destroyed with ease. 📌Subscribe to @SputnikInt

Ukraine's ex-Minister of Energy Ivan Plachkov advises Ukrainians to stock up on firewood "The situation in the energy system of Ukraine during the heating season will be very threatening. The situation is critical now, and in winter it could be catastrophic," he said. 📌Subscribe to @SputnikInt

Ukraine's ex-Minister of Energy Ivan Plachkov advises Ukrainians to stock up on firewood "The situation in the energy system of Ukraine during the heating season will be very threatening. The situation is critical now, and in winter it could be catastrophic," he said. 📌Subscribe to @SputnikInt

❗Biden has admitted he would bring the US military to Taiwan if China uses force on the island. Subscribe to @SputnikInt

❗Biden has admitted he would bring the US military to Taiwan if China uses force on the island. Subscribe to @SputnikInt