General Awareness

INTERNATIONAL AFFAIRS - December 2014

Dec 2014

Jun 10, 2021

US Will Maintain its Diplomatic Presence in Afghanistan

As per Secretary of State Tony Blinken, the US is only withdrawing its troops from Afghanistan, not withdrawing from the country, and it is determined to maintain a strong diplomatic presence there to extend economic and humanitarian support.
Responding to apprehensions of senators about the future of several programmes in Afghanistan, including those for women and children, Blinken assured them that the programmes will continue with the support of the Congress.

South Africa and UAE Ratify Extradition Treaty

An extradition treaty between South Africa and the UAE has been ratified paving the way for Indian-origin businessmen Gupta brothers to be returned to the African nation from Dubai to stand trial for allegedly looting billions of Rands from state-owned institutions.
Former South African Justice Minister Michael Masutha had signed the treaty in 2018.
The UAE, however, signed the treaty in June 2021.
The treaty will enable the two countries to assist each other in the investigation and prosecution of crimes through mutual legal assistance and the extradition of fugitives.

Jun 09, 2021

Economist's Annual Survey of World's Most Liveable Cities

According to annual survey of World's most liveable cities 2021, Covid-19 pandemic has shaken up rankings of liveable cities.
Auckland is the most liveable city in 2021 because of its successful approach in containing pandemic.
Auckland is followed by Osaka and Tokyo in Japan, Adelaide in Australia and Wellington in New Zealand. All these countries had swift response to pandemic.
According to the report, metropolises in Australia, Japan and New Zealand leaping ahead of metropolises in Europe.
Life remains most difficult in Damascus because of Syria's ongoing civil war.
Most notable rise was by Honolulu, Hawaii in United States. It came to 14th position by moved up 46 places. Ranking improved because of its containment measures and fast vaccination programme.

Israel Parliament to Vote on New Government

Israel's parliament speaker has scheduled a vote on a new government that would end Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu's 12-year rule, the longest in the country's history.
The fragile coalition consists of eight parties spanning Israel's political spectrum, with only a narrow majority in the 120-member Knesset, or Parliament. But it appears to have held together despite a furious campaign by Netanyahu's supporters that includes death threats and protests outside lawmakers' homes. Naftali Bennett, an ultranationalist former Netanyahu ally, would serve as prime minister for two years, followed by centrist Yair Lapid, the driving force behind the coalition, who thanked the speaker for scheduling the vote.

UN Secretary Gen Antonio Guterres Set to be Re-elected as Chief

UN Secretary General Antonio Guterres is all set to be re-elected as chief of the world body after the powerful Security Council adopted by acclamation a resolution recommending his name to the General Assembly for a second five-year term beginning January 1, 2022.
The 15-nation Council held a closed meeting where it adopted the resolution recommending Guterres' name to the 193-member General Assembly for a second term as Secretary General.

Biden Administration to Go after China on Trade

The United States will target China with a new "strike force" to combat unfair trade practices, as it rolled out findings of a review of US access to critical products, from semiconductors to electric-vehicle batteries.
The "supply chain trade strike force," led by the US trade representative, will look for specific violations that have contributed to a "hollowing out" of supply chains that could be addressed with trade remedies, including toward China.

Jun 08, 2021

Peru Election: Pedro Castillo Gains Last-minute Lead

Left-wing candidate Pedro Castillo has edged into the lead in a dramatic twist in Peru's presidential election.
With 94% of votes counted, Mr. Castillo overtook his right-wing rival, Keiko Fujimori, who is running for the presidency for the third time.
He has a lead of 0.1 percentage point, with just over 25,000 votes currently separating the two candidates.
They have both called for calm while the count is under way. This is Peru's most polarised poll in recent history.
Ms. Fujimori had been leading since the official count began, but as results from rural areas - where support for Mr. Castillo is strong - started to come in, the gap between them narrowed.

Kamala Harris tells Guatemala Migrants: 'Do Not Come to US'

US Vice President Kamala Harris has urged would-be migrants in Guatemala not to try to enter the United States illegally.
Speaking on her first overseas trip since taking office, she said that the journey north was dangerous and would mainly benefit people smugglers.
Ms. Harris warned people they would be turned back at the border.
She has been tasked by President Joe Biden with controlling a surge in migration at the southern border.
Ms Harris has described her task as finding solutions to tackle the root causes of the border crisis, including corruption and the lack of economic opportunities.

Abdulla Shahid Elected President of 76th Session of UN General Assembly

Maldives' Foreign Minister Abdulla Shahid was elected as the new President of the UN General Assembly (UNGA), winning a three-fourth majority against contender Afghanistan's former foreign minister Zalmai Rassoul.
Shahid garnered 143 votes while Rassoul received 48 votes out of the 191 votes polled.
The election to the UNGA presidential post is held on an annual basis, rotated amongst various regional groupings. The 76th UNGA session (2021-22) was the turn of the Asia-Pacific group.
This is the first time the Maldives will be occupying the office of the President of the UNGA.

Jun 07, 2021

Merkel's Party Wins Final State Vote by Big Margin

Germany's centre right has fended off a challenge by the far right in the last regional test before national polls in September, an exit poll suggests.
The Christian Democrats (CDU) of Chancellor Angela Merkel won 36% of the vote in the state election in Saxony-Anhalt, a former part of East Germany.
It did much better than opinion polls had predicted.
The far-right Alternative for Germany (AfD) took 22.5% after nearly equalling the CDU in the opinion polls.
Mrs. Merkel has dominated German politics as chancellor since 2005, leading an uneasy coalition with the CDU's old left-wing political foe, the Social Democrats (SDP), after the last election in 2017.

Historic Agreement, Sets Minimum Tax of 15% for Corporates

The G7 Group of leading economies has reached "a historic agreement" to reform the global tax system to make it fit for the global digital age.
The US Treasury Secretary Janet Yellen said that the minimum rate of at least 15 per cent would end the race to the bottom in corporate taxation.
The G7 includes the UK, Canada, France, Germany, Italy, Japan and the US.
The UK holds the G7 presidency this year.
British Prime Minister Boris Johnson will host the G7 leaders for a summit in Cornwall in South West England from June 11-13.

Interpol Launches "I-Familia" to Identify Missing Persons

The Interpol has launched a new global database named 'I-Familia' to identify missing persons through family DNA and help the police solve cold cases in member countries.
Describing it as a groundbreaking database, the Interpol in a statement said that it applied cutting-edge scientific research and used the DNA of relatives to identify missing persons or unidentified human remains around the world.
DNA kinship matching is used mostly in cases where a direct sample of the missing person is not available. 'I-Familia' is the first global database to automatically control for such differences without requiring knowledge of the missing person's genetic ancestry and provide standardised guidelines on what constitutes a match.

El Salvador Plans to Make Cryptocurrency Legal Tender

El Salvador's President plans to make the Bitcoin cryptocurrency legal tender in the country.
If his plan is backed by Congress, the Central American country would be first in the world to formally adopt the digital currency.
It would be used alongside the US dollar, El Salvador's official currency.
As per President Nayib Bukele, Bitcoin will make it easier for Salvadorans living abroad to send payments home.
"In the short term, this will generate jobs and help provide financial inclusion to thousands outside the formal economy," Mr. Bukele told a Bitcoin conference in Florida, adding that it could also boost investment to the country.

Jun 06, 2021

FATF Retains Pakistan on Enhanced Follow-up List

The Asia Pacific Group on Laundering has retained Pakistan on "enhanced follow-up" status for outstanding requirements, and Islamabad will continue to report back to it on the country's progress to strengthen its implementation of anti-money laundering and combating financing terror measures.
Pakistan was put on the grey list by the Paris-based Financial Action Task Force (FATF) in June 2018 and the country has been struggling to come out of it. The APG is a regional affiliate of the FATF. The second Follow-Up Report (FUR) on Mutual Evaluation of Pakistan released by the APG also downgraded the country on one criterion. The report said Pakistan was re-rated to 'compliant' status on five counts and on 15 others to 'largely compliant' and on yet another count to 'partially compliant'.

Denmark Parliament Approves Giant Artificial Island off Copenhagen

Plans for an artificial island to house 35,000 people and protect the port of Copenhagen from rising sea levels have been approved by Danish MPs.
The giant island, named Lynetteholm, would be connected to the mainland via a ring road, tunnels and a metro line.
The approval by Denmark's parliament paves the way for the 1 sq mile (2.6 sq km) project to begin later this year.
But it faces opposition from environmentalists who have concerns over the impact of its construction.
Plans for Lynetteholm include a dam system around its perimeter, with the aim of protecting the harbour from rising sea levels and storm surges.
If construction goes ahead as planned, the majority of the foundations for the island off Denmark's capital should be in place by 2035, with an aim to fully complete the project by 2070.

Norway Reaches Post-Brexit Trade Deal with UK

Non-European Union member Norway reached a post-Brexit trade deal with its greatest trading partner, Britain, which left the EU last year following a 2016 referendum.
The agreement includes Iceland and Liechtenstein, which also are outside the bloc and together with the Norwegians form the European Economic Area (EEA).
Norwegian Prime Minister Erna Solberg called the deal "ambitious and comprehensive".
Negotiations have been going on since 2020.

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