General Awareness

INTERNATIONAL AFFAIRS - June 2015

Jun 2015

May 10, 2022

Zelenskyy Awards Ukraine's Four-legged Hero Patron for Mine-sniffing Efforts

Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy awarded the medal of 'Excellence in Service' to Patron, a four-legged member of the country's armed forces. The Jack Russell terrier, a service dog, was credited with locating and preventing the detonation of at least 200 explosives since the beginning of Russia's war on Ukraine on February 24, 2022.
Patron received his award during a press conference that Zelenskyy held with Canadian Prime Minister Justin Trudeau, who made a surprise visit to the war-torn nation. The award also went to Patron's owner, a major in the Civil Protection Service, Myhailo Iliev.
Patron has won hearts of the people from around the globe for his heroic services to Ukraine amid the ongoing war. Earlier, Ukraine's foreign ministry had hailed the four-legged hero for discovering over 150 explosive devices in the city of Cherchiv.

UAE to Introduce Unemployment Insurance in Latest Economic Reform

The United Arab Emirates will introduce a form of unemployment insurance, the latest reform by the Gulf country as it strives to attract talent and investment amid increasing regional economic competition. Insured workers would receive some money for a limited time period if made unemployed, UAE Prime Minister and Vice-President Sheikh Mohammed bin Rashid al-Maktoum, who is also the ruler of trade hub Dubai, said on Twitter, citing a cabinet decision.
Permission to reside in Gulf countries like the UAE, where foreigners make up 85% of the population according to the IMF, has traditionally been tied to employment, and loss of job usually means the worker has to leave the country.
Gulf states Qatar, Oman, Kuwait and Saudi Arabia have provided some form of unemployment support to citizens, and Bahrain also has a form of jobless insurance for resident non-citizen workers.

Sri Lankan PM Mahinda Rajapaksa Resigns amid Worst Economic Crisis

Sri Lankan Prime Minister Mahinda Rajapaksa resigned amid unprecedented economic turmoil, hours after his supporters attacked anti-government protesters outside President Gotabaya Rajapaksa's office, leaving at least 130 people injured and prompting authorities to impose a nationwide curfew and deploy army troops in the capital. Prime Minister Mahinda, 76, sent his resignation letter to the President Gotabaya Rajapaksa after violent scenes were witnessed in Colombo.
Sri Lanka is currently in the throes of unprecedented economic turmoil since its independence from Britain in 1948. The crisis is caused in part by a lack of foreign currency, which has meant that the country cannot afford to pay for imports of staple foods and fuel, leading to acute shortages and very high prices.

G7 Countries Pledge to Phase out Imports of Russian Oil

Group of Seven (G7) countries pledged to ban or phase out imports of Russian oil over Ukraine row. The announcement came as the G7 held its third meeting of the year via video conference, with Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky participating. The meeting was called to discuss the conflict, support for Ukraine, and additional measures against Moscow, including on energy.
The joint statement from the G7, France, Canada, Germany, Italy, Japan, Britain, and the US, did not specify exactly what commitments each country will make to move away from Russian energy. The statement said, they will ensure that they do so in a timely and orderly fashion, and in ways that provide time for the world to secure alternative supplies.
The G7 leaders also slammed President Vladimir Putin personally for his actions in Ukraine. The leaders commemorated the end of World War 2 in Europe, which happened on this day in 1945, following the surrender of the German forces to the allied powers.

President Vladimir Putin Addresses Annual Victory Day Parade in Moscow

Russia held its annual Victory Day military parade in Moscow's Red Square to honor the Soviet victory over Nazi Germany in World War II. This year's traditional parade featured 11,000 participants and 131 armored vehicles. President Vladimir V. Putin used a speech delivered from his rostrum near the Lenin Mausoleum to try and turn Russian pride in the 1945 victory into increased support for what he has called the "special military operation" in Ukraine. The Russian leader again scolded the West for failing to heed Russian demands for security guarantees and a rollback to NATO's expansion, arguing that it left Moscow no other choice but to launch an action in Ukraine.
Putin claimed that Russian troops were fighting for the country's security in Ukraine and observed a minute of silence to honour the troops who fell in combat. He noted that some of the troops taking part in the parade have previously fought in Ukraine.

May 09, 2022

Lankan President Gotabaya Rajapaksa Reimposes State of Emergency

Sri Lankan President Gotabaya Rajapaksa declared a state of emergency. The state of emergency gives the police and security forces the power to arbitrarily arrest and detain people. The decision was taken to ensure public security and maintain essential services. The move comes amid weeks of public protests demanding the resignation of the President and the government. Sri Lanka is going through its worst economic crisis in its history.
Rajapaksa had declared emergency on April 1 also after a mass protest near his residence. He had revoked it on April 5.

Beijing Loyalist John Lee Elected as Hong Kong's Next Leader

John Lee, a hard-line security chief, who oversaw a crackdown on Hong Kong's pro-democracy movement, was elected as the city's next leader in a vote cast by a largely pro-Beijing committee. Lee was the only candidate and won with over 99% of the vote in which nearly all 1,500 committee members were carefully vetted by the central government in Beijing.
He will replace current leader Carrie Lam on July 1. Her five-term was marked by huge pro-democracy protests calling for her resignation, a security crackdown that has quashed virtually all dissent, the recent COVID-19 wave that had overwhelmed the health system — events that have undermined Hong Kong's reputation as an international business hub with Western-style freedoms.
Thousands of residents had left the city of 7.4 million people amid the 2019 protests and subsequent harsh pandemic restrictions, including many professionals and expatriates.

May 08, 2022

India Invites Montreal-based ICAO to Join International Solar Alliance

As he interacted with executives and representatives of various nations at the International Civil Aviation Organisation (ICAO), India's Civil Aviation Minister Jyotiraditya Scindia extended an invitation to the Montreal-based United Nations agency to join the International Solar Alliance (ISA).
This came as Scindia met with the president of the Executive Council of ICAO Salvatore Sciacchitano. He also met with ICAO's secretary-general Juan Carlos Salazar.
Several international and multilateral organisations are partners of the ISA, which was launched by India and France in 2015. Among them are UN agencies like United Nations Development Programme, UN Environment, and others like the World Bank, European Union, and the Commonwealth Secretariat.

May 07, 2022

Robert Piper Becomes Guterres' Special Adviser on Internal Displacement

UN Secretary-General Antonio Guterres appointed Robert Piper of Australia as his special adviser on solutions to internal displacement.
The appointment of a special adviser on solutions to internal displacement is a key component of the secretary-general's Action Agenda on Internal Displacement.
The action agenda, developed in response to the September 2021 report of the High-Level Panel on Internal Displacement, will help mobilize collective action and advance solutions for the millions of people who today find themselves displaced within their own countries, with a focus on root causes anchored in the 2030 Agenda for Sustainable Development.

Sitharaman, 3 CMs among 300 Leaders Expected to Attend WEF Davos Summit

Nearly 300 government leaders including 50 heads of state or government are expected to attend the World Economic Forum Annual Meeting later this month in the Swiss ski resort town of Davos and the Indian participants would include Finance Minister Nirmala Sitharaman as well as three Chief Ministers and over 100 CEOs.
Geneva-based WEF, which describes itself as an international organisation for public-private cooperation, has been hosting its annual meeting in Davos every January for nearly 50 years, but it could not take place in a physical format in 2021 due to the COVID-19 pandemic, while the 2022 edition had to be postponed from January to May.

May 06, 2022

US Intents to Appoint Ex-US Ambassador to India Richard Verma to Advisory Board

US President Joe Biden intents to appoint Indian-American lawyer diplomat Richard Verma, also a former US ambassador to India, as a member of his Intelligence Advisory Board.
The President's Intelligence Advisory Board (PIAB) is an independent element within his Executive Office.
Verma is currently the general counsel and head of Global Public Policy for Mastercard. In this role, he oversees the company's law and policy functions in the United States and around the world.
Verma, a member of Biden's Democratic Party, was the US Ambassador to India from 2014 to 2017.

Taliban Stops Issuing Driving Licence to Women in Kabul & other Provinces in Afghanistan

The Taliban regime in Afghanistan stopped issuing driving licenses to women in Kabul and other provinces. The ban comes at a time when the country suffers from a devastating humanitarian crisis, with an acute shortage of food and other essential supplies.
Notably, the situation of human rights in Afghanistan has worsened since the collapse of the Afghan government and the Taliban's return to power in August 2021. Serious human rights violations continue unabated, especially against women since taliban took over the country.
Afghanistan is grappling with a serious humanitarian crisis as according to international assessments. Afghanistan has now the highest number of people in emergency food insecurity in the world, with more than 23 million in need of assistance. Approximately 95 per cent of the population having insufficient food consumption.

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