Dr. Renee Wegrzyn Appointed as the Director of ARPA-H
The US President Joe Biden appointed Dr. Renee Wegrzyn as the inaugural director of the ARPA-H (Advanced Research Projects Agency for Health).
Dr. Renee Wegrzyn, is a biologist and former government scientist.
The ARPA-H Director's tenure would last for five years.
The purpose of the ARPA-H is to seek innovative solutions to biomedical problems.
'Village Boy' William Ruto Sworn in as Kenya's President
William Ruto was sworn in as Kenya's President after narrowly winning the August 9 election in East Africa's most stable democracy.
The Supreme Court had rejected a challenge by losing candidate and long-time opposition figure Raila Odinga of the official results, completing a markedly peaceful election in a country with a history of troubled ones.
Ruto had been the deputy to outgoing President Uhuru Kenyatta.
Sep 13, 2022
Sri Lanka, Pakistan and Maldives Stand Neck-deep in Chinese Debt
According to Forbes, Sri Lanka, Pakistan and Maldives are among the biggest debtors of China. Pakistan owes USD 77.3 billion of external debt to China.
Maldives' debt to 31 per cent of its Gross National Income (GNI). Maldives' total debt amounted to MVR 86 billion by the end of 2020, MVR 44 billion of which is external debt.
Forbes, collecting data from The World Bank report as of 2020, said that 97 countries across the globe are under Chinese debt. Countries heavily in debt to China are mostly located in Africa, but can also be found in Central Asia, Southeast Asia and the Pacific.
North Korea's New Law Allows For Nuclear 1st Strike, Makes Policy Irreversible
North Korea officially enshrined the right to use pre-emptive nuclear strikes to protect itself in a new law that leader Kim Jong Un said makes its nuclear status "irreversible" and bars denuclearisation talks.
The move came as observers said North Korea appears to be preparing to resume nuclear testing for the first time since 2017, after historic summits with then-U.S. president Donald Trump and other world leaders in 2018 failed to persuade Kim to abandon his weapons development.
The North's rubber-stamp parliament, the Supreme People's Assembly, passed the legislation as a replacement to a 2013 law that first outlined the country's nuclear status.
Sep 12, 2022
Piyush Goyal Takes Part in the First in-person Ministerial Meeting of the Indo-Pacific Economic F...
Union Minister of Commerce and Industry Piyush Goyal attended the first in-person Ministerial meeting of the India-Pacific Economic Forum (IPEF) in Los Angeles.
Interacting with media on the side-lines of the Indo-Pacific Economic Framework (IPEF) Ministerial Meeting, the Minister assured that India would take decisions on different aspects of the frameworks of IPEF based on our national interest.
Goyal said that there have been very useful engagements with the 14 members of the IPEF and added that the officials from member nations had worked very hard to prepare ground for such fruitful interactions.
He expressed hope that in a day's time, IPEF would finalize a framework within which member nations could interact on different areas of mutual interest.
Ahead of the Ministerial meeting of the Indo Pacific Economic Framework for Prosperity, Goyal had met Australian Trade Minister H.E. Don Farrell in Los Angeles.
Goyal also held a meeting with US Commerce Secretary Gina Raimondo on the side-lines of IPEF Ministerial meeting in Los Angeles.
Volker Turk Appointed New UN High Commissioner for Human Rights
United Nations Secretary-General Antonio Guterres appointed Volker Turk of Austria as the next United Nations High Commissioner for Human Rights, following approval by the General Assembly.
Turk has devoted his long and distinguished career to advancing universal human rights, notably the international protection of some of the world's most vulnerable people – refugees and Stateless persons.
From 2019 to 2021, Turk served as Assistant Secretary-General for Strategic Coordination in the UN chief's Executive Office.
Previously, he was the Assistant High Commissioner for Protection at UN refugees, UNHCR, in Geneva where he played a key role in the development of the landmark Global Compact on Refugees.
India stays out of Trade Policy Pillar at IPEF (Indo-Pacific Economic Forum)
India stayed out of the joint declaration on the trade pillar of the U.S.-led Indo-Pacific Economic Framework ministerial meet in Los Angeles, with Union Commerce Minister Piyush Goyal citing concerns over possible discrimination against developing economies.
India was the only one of the 14 IPEF countries, which included South East Asian countries, Australia, New Zealand, South Korea and Japan, not to join the declaration on trade.
The decision to stay out came just four months after the launch of the talks by the IPEF leaders, including Prime Minister Narendra Modi, on the sidelines of the Quad Summit in Tokyo in May.
King Charles Proclaimed Britain's New Monarch
King Charles III was officially proclaimed Britain's monarch rday in a historic ceremony at St. James' Palace. Charles automatically became the king when his mother, Queen Elizabeth II, died and in a ceremonial step the Accession Council formalized him as the sovereign- officially confirming his position.
The ceremony at St. James's Palace, a royal residence in London, was attended by the Accession Council which comprises senior politicians and officials who advise the monarch.
King Charles III was accompanied at the ceremony by his wife Camilla, the Queen Consort, and his eldest son Prince William who will now be heir to the throne and known by the title Prince of Wales.
Sep 11, 2022
South Korea Proposes Meeting with North on war-affected Family Reunions
South Korea proposed a meeting with North Korea to resume reunions of families separated by war, despite long-strained ties between the rivals over the North's nuclear weapons programme.
It's unclear if North Korea would accept the offer because it has already rejected the new South Korean government's offer to provide massive aid in return for denuclearisation.
Since the 1950-53 Korean War ended, the two Koreas have been banning millions of people who found themselves suddenly divided from visiting each other's territory across the world's most heavily fortified border. Decades later, most have no word on whether their loved ones are still alive.
Sep 10, 2022
U.S. Unveils 2 Billion $ In Military Aid for Europe
U.S. Secretary of State Antony Blinken made an unscheduled visit to Kyiv, as the Biden administration announced major new military aid worth more than $2 billion for Ukraine and other European countries threatened by Russia. In meetings with senior Ukrainian officials, Blinken said that the Biden administration had notified Congress of its intent to provide $2 billion in long-term Foreign Military Financing to Ukraine and 18 of its neighbors, including NATO members and regional security partners that are "most potentially at risk for future Russian aggression.
Cuba Says US is being Unfair for Keeping it on Sponsors of Terrorism List
Cuba's Deputy Foreign Minister accused the Biden administration of acting immorally, illegitimately and unfairly by keeping Cuba on the list of state sponsors of terrorism, claiming it has been a victim of state-sponsored terrorism by the United States for more than 60 years.
The United States imposed an economic embargo on Cuba in 1960 following the revolution led by Fidel Castro and the nationalisation of properties belonging to U.S. citizens and corporations.
Removing Cuba from the blacklist had been one of then-President Barack Obama's main foreign policy achievements as he sought better relations with the Caribbean island, an effort endorsed by Biden as his vice president.
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