General Awareness

INTERNATIONAL AFFAIRS - February 2016

Feb 2016

Jun 02, 2023

Argentine Meteorologist Becomes First Female Head of UN Weather Agency

The World Meteorological Organization voted for Argentina's Celeste Saulo to become its first woman leader and steer the WMO's critical global role in tracking climate change.
Saulo, a WMO vice-president who has headed Argentina's weather service since 2014, won a landslide vote at the UN climate and weather agency's congress in Geneva.
The WMO's role in climate change has become increasingly prominent and Saulo will likely become a well-known advocate on this pressing world issue.
She will take over from the outgoing secretary-general Petteri Taalas on January 1, 2024. The Finnish meteorologist is coming to the end of his maximum second four-year term.

Jun 01, 2023

BRICS Foreign Ministers' Meeting in Cape Town

External Affairs Minister S. Jaishankar joined fellow Foreign Ministers from the emerging economies of Brazil, Russia, India, China and South Africa (BRICS) in Cape Town, South Africa for a two-day meeting to discuss various issues, including local currency trading and a peace plan for the ongoing conflict between Russia and Ukraine.
The meeting, hosted by South Africa, will pave the way for the 15th BRICS Summit scheduled to take place in August 2023, which will bring together leaders from the member countries, including Prime Minister Narendra Modi, Russian President Vladimir Putin, and Chinese President Xi Jinping.
Formation: BRICS was initially known as "BRIC" and was formed in 2001 by Goldman Sachs economist Jim O'Neill. South Africa joined the group in 2010, expanding it to BRICS.
Economic Significance: BRICS countries represent about 42% of the world's population and contribute to approximately 23% of global GDP. They are considered major players in the global economy.

Russia Claims it Destroyed Ukraine's Last Warship

Russia claimed it had destroyed the last major warship of the Ukrainian naval forces, which it said was stationed in the southern port of Odesa.
A high-precision strike by the Russian Air Force on a ship anchorage site in the port of Odesa destroyed the last warship of the Ukrainian Navy, the 'Yuri Olefirenko'.
The Yuri Olefirenko is a medium-size landing ship for troops and vehicles.
First named 'Kirovograd', the ship was renamed in 2016 in honour of a Ukrainian marine killed near Mariupol in 2015.
Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky had decorated its crew in June 2022.

May 31, 2023

BRICS Bank to Expand Membership as Saudi Arabia Looks to Join

The New Development Bank, the lender created by the BRICS group of nations, will widen its membership as it seeks to boost its capital and counter the influence of Western-dominated multilateral banks.
The lender, formed by Brazil, Russia, India, China and South Africa, will look at increasing the diversity of its members in terms of geography, development stages and on the size of the countries.
Saudi Arabia is the latest to discuss joining the bank, a move that would give the lender more financial muscle. The bank was created in 2014 as a counterweight to the International Monetary Fund and the World Bank.
The bank's membership is open to any country within the United Nations. Bangladesh and the United Arab Emirates became members in 2021, while Egypt joined in February 2022.

May 30, 2023

Rajnath Singh Attends Swearing-in Ceremony of President of Nigeria Bola Ahmed

Raksha Mantri Rajnath Singh attended the swearing-in ceremony of President of Nigeria Bola Ahmed Tinubu in Abuja. In addition to senior officials of Ministry of Defence, the Raksha Mantri's delegation to Nigeria included top executives of Hindustan Aeronautics Limited (HAL) and Goa Shipyard Limited (GSL). These executives held a series of meetings with Nigerian military and Government representatives for identifying their requirements which can be fulfilled by the Indian Defence companies. B-to-B meetings were held with Nigerian companies for enhancing cooperation. Besides high-level political representation from countries across the African continent, including several Heads of State, India was among the select non-African nations that were represented in the 'swearing-in ceremony' at Ministerial level, reflecting the high priority and strength of our bilateral relations with Nigeria. Rajnath Singh also had a brief meeting with the Minister for Local Government, Rural Development and Cooperative of Bangladesh Md Tazul Islam who was also in Abuja to attend the swearing-in ceremony. The meeting was a testimony of the bonhomie between India and Bangladesh and the two leaders expressed the commitment of their respective Governments towards further expanding and strengthening the bilateral ties.

CAG Girish Chandra Murmu Re-elected External Auditor of WHO

The Comptroller and Auditor General (CAG) of India Girish Chandra Murmu was re-elected as external auditor of the World Health Organization (WHO) for a four-year term from 2024 to 2027. He has been holding the position for a four-year term from 2019 to 2023.
At the 76th World Health Assembly in Geneva, Girish Chandra Murmu was re-elected in the first round of voting itself with 114 out of 156 votes.
This was the second major international audit assignment for the CAG this year following his selection for the post of external auditor (2024-2027) of the International Labour Organization (ILO) in Geneva in March 2023.
The CAG is also the external auditor of Food and Agriculture Organization (2020-2025), International Atomic Energy Agency (2022-2027), Organization for Prohibition of Chemical Weapons (2021-2023).

May 29, 2023

China Select Committee of US House Recommends Making India Part of NATO Plus

In a significant development ahead of Prime Minister Narendra Modi's visit to the United States, a powerful Congressional Committee recommended strengthening NATO Plus by including India.
NATO Plus, currently NATO Plus 5, is a security arrangement that brings together NATO and five aligned nations – Australia, New Zealand, Japan, Israel, and South Korea – to boost global defence cooperation.
Bringing India on board would facilitate seamless intelligence sharing between these countries and India would access the latest military technology without much of a time lag.
The House Select Committee on the Strategic Competition between the United States and the Chinese Communist Party (CCP), led by Chairman Mike Gallagher and Ranking Member Raja Krishnamoorthi, overwhelmingly adopted a policy proposal to enhance Taiwan's deterrence, including through strengthening NATO Plus to include India.
An initiative of the Republican leadership, the Select Committee is popularly called the China Committee.

Erdogan Wins Turkish Presidential Elections

Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan won reelection, extending his increasingly authoritarian rule into a third decade as the country reels from high inflation and the aftermath of an earthquake that leveled entire cities.
A third term gives Erdogan an even stronger hand domestically and internationally, and the election results will have implications far beyond the capital of Ankara. Turkey stands at the crossroads of Europe and Asia, and it plays a key role in NATO.
With more than 99% of ballot boxes opened, unofficial results from competing news agencies showed Erdogan with 52% of the vote, compared with 48% for his challenger, Kemal Kilicdaroglu. The head of Turkey's electoral board confirmed the victory, saying that even after accounting for outstanding votes, the result was another term for Erdogan.
Erdogan, who has been at Turkey's helm for 20 years, came just short of victory in the first round of elections on May 14, 2023. It was the first time he failed to win an election outright, but he made up.

Saudi Arabia and Canada to Restore Full Diplomatic Ties

Canada and Saudi Arabia agreed to restore full diplomatic ties and appoint new ambassadors, both countries said, bringing to a close a 2018 dispute that damaged relations and trade.
The decision followed discussions held between Canadian Prime Minister Justin Trudeau and Saudi Crown Prince Mohammed bin Salman on the sidelines of the summit of the Asia-Pacific Economic Cooperation (APEC) Forum in Bangkok in November 2022.
As part of the restoration of ties, Canada will appoint Jean-Philippe Linteau as its new ambassador to Riyadh.

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