General Awareness

INTERNATIONAL AFFAIRS - March 2016

Mar 2016

Nov 28, 2020

Berlin to Name Street after Tanzanian Independence Activist

Councilors in the German capital, Berlin, have voted to replace a street name honouring a colonial governor in East Africa accused of having ordered massacres with one of a leading female Tanzanian independence activist.
Wissmannstraße, named after Hermann von Wissmann, is set to become Lucy-Lameck-Straße.
She was Tanzania's first female cabinet minister as well as a leading figure in the country's independence movement.
Von Wissmann was Governor of German East Africa (now Tanzania, Burundi and Rwanda) in the late 19th Century and is believed to have been behind the mass killings of local people.
Berlin Postkolonial, one of the groups behind the call for the name change, welcomed the local authority's decision.

India to Build Shahoot Dam in Afghanistan

The Union Minister of External Affairs Jaishankar recently announced at the Geneva Donors conference that India is to construct the Shahtoot Dam across the Maidan River, a tributary of Kabul River in Afghanistan. The negotiations to build the dam across the river began in 2016.
In 2016, India had funded for the Salma dam across Hari River (Herat province) of Afghanistan. The dam is also called the Afghan-India Friendship Dam.
The Shahtoot dam is to be constructed across Kabul River, one of the five river basins of Afghanistan. The dam will provide irrigation, drinking water for the Kabul province of the country. The cost of the project has been estimated at 305 million USD.

Nov 27, 2020

India-Lanka-Maldives to Revive NSA Level Dialogue

India-Sri Lanka-Maldives are all set to revive trilateral dialogue between NSAs of the three states, six years after it was stalled, eyeing to counter-terror in the zone and provide stability to the region.
Maj Gen (Retd). Kamal Gunaratne is hosting National Security Adviser Ajit Doval in Colombo for the 4th NSA Level Meeting on Trilateral Maritime Security Cooperation, being hosted by Sri Lanka.
Earlier Meetings were held in 2011 in Maldives, in 2013 in Sri Lanka, and in 2014 in India. The NSA-level Trilateral Meeting has served as an effective platform for cooperation among Indian Ocean countries. Mauritius and Seychelles attended the 3rd meeting as guest countries.
Defence Minister Mariya Didi will also participate in the meeting representing Maldives.

China's First Hualong One Nuclear Reactor Starts Operations

As per China National Nuclear Corp (CNNC), its first Hualong One, a third-generation pressurised water nuclear reactor, has started operations and is connected to the grid.
The design, seen as competition to the Westinghouse-developed AP1000 and Europe's EPR, is deployed in the 1,150-megawatt Fuqing Unit 5 in the southeastern province of Fujian.
Hualong One is designed to have a 60-year lifespan and its reactor core needs refuelling every 18 months.
The second Hualong One at Fuqing, Unit 6, is scheduled for completion in 2021.
China currently has six overseas Hualong One projects under construction.

S. Korea and China Vow to Strengthen Ties

The Foreign Ministers of South Korea and China pledged to work together to advance bilateral ties and tackle regional and global issues, including stalled nuclear talks involving North Korea and the coronavirus pandemic.
South Korea's Kang Kyung-wha held talks with her Chinese counterpart Wang Yi.

UAE Halts New Visas to Citizens of 13 Countries

As per reports, the United Arab Emirates has stopped issuing new visas to citizens of 13 mostly Muslim-majority countries, including Iran, Syria, Afghanistan and Pakistan.
A document said that applications for new employment and visit visas had been suspended for nationals - those outside the UAE - of 13 countries that also included Somalia, Libya and Yemen until further notice.
The ban also applies to citizens of Algeria, Kenya, Iraq, Lebanon, Tunisia and Turkey.
The visa ban also comes two months after the Gulf state established formal ties with Israel, a move that broke with decades of Arab policy and angered some Muslim states and communities.

Nov 26, 2020

Scotland Becomes First Country in the World to Make Sanitary Products Free for Women

Scotland became the first country to make sanitary products free. It is the first nation in the world to take a step against period poverty, which refers to the prevalent phenomena of being unable to afford products such as pads or tampons to manage menstrual bleeding.
With this new bill, called the Period Products (Free Provision) Scotland Bill, tampons and sanitary pads will be available free of cost at designated public places such as community centres, youth clubs and pharmacies.
The bill was passed unanimously, and First Minister of Scotland Nicola Sturgeon called it "an important policy for women and girls."

Shanghai Becomes World's Most Connected City

Shanghai has dethroned London to become the world's most connected city as the coronavirus shakes up international travel.
According to airline industry body IATA, London has seen a 67% fall in connectivity in air travel.
Shanghai has risen up the ranks, and the world's four most connected cities are now all in China.
Large transport hubs including London, New York and Tokyo have been hit hard by the dramatic reduction in flights in and out of their cities.
The top four most connected cities in the world are now Shanghai, Beijing, Guangzhou, and Chengdu.

Bhutan and Germany Establish Diplomatic Ties

Bhutan and Germany established diplomatic ties with each other, something that was in the pipeline for a while now. In a small ceremony at the Bhutanese mission in Delhi, German ambassador to India Walter J. Lindner and Bhutan's envoy to India Major General V. Namgyel exchanged the diplomatic documents marking the establishment of ties.
The announcement does not involve plans to open resident missions in both countries. As per a statement from Bhutanese foreign ministry, with the establishment of diplomatic relations, the two ambassadors expressed the desire to further deepen the friendship and cooperation between the two countries.
Bhutan now has diplomatic relations with 53 countries and the European Union. It is interesting that Thimphu does not have any formal diplomatic relation with any P5 country--US, Russia, UK, France or China.

Nov 25, 2020

John Kerry Named Climate Envoy as Inner Circle Get Key Posts

US President-elect Joe Biden is to nominate one of the leading architects of the Paris climate agreement as his climate envoy.
Ex-US Secretary of State John Kerry was one of several named for top positions by the Biden transition team.
It marks a big break with the climate policy under the Trump administration as Biden makes good on his campaign pledge to tackle climate change.
Other key picks include long-time aide Antony Blinken as Secretary of State.

World renews aid for Afghanistan

The international community pledged another four years of aid for Afghanistan but tied its money to rights being upheld in stuttering peace talks with the Taliban - as fresh deadly blasts underlined the ongoing violence. At a global donor conference in Geneva, countries began reaffirming their commitment to propping up a country beset by violence between the Taliban and government forces, rampant corruption and an imminent withdrawal of US troops.
Donor nations meet every four years to pledge aid to Afghanistan, which is almost entirely reliant on foreign assistance despite years of promised reforms and attempts to grow the economy.

India Announces Launch of High Impact Community Development Projects in Afghanistan

External Affairs Minister S. Jaishankar during the 2020 Afghanistan Conference organised in Geneva through video- conference said that India has announced the launch of Phase-IV of the High Impact Community Development Projects in Afghanistan. It envisages more than 100 projects worth 80 million dollars that India would undertake in Afghanistan. The two day conference was co-hosted by the United Nations, the Government of Afghanistan, and the Government of Finland.
S. Jaishankar also announced that India had just concluded with Afghanistan an agreement for the construction of the Shatoot Dam, which would provide safe drinking water to two million residents of Kabul city. India had earlier built the 202-kilometer Phul-e-Khumri transmission line that provided electricity to Kabul city.
S. Jaishankar pointed out that Afghanistan's growth has been constrained by its land locked geography and highlighted India's efforts to provide an alternate connectivity through Chabahar Port and a dedicated Air Freight Corridor between India and Afghanistan.

Nov 24, 2020

Biden Picks Blinken as Secretary of State

President-elect Joe Biden is moving forward on his campaign pledge to restore America as a leader on the global stage and lean on experts, tapping veteran diplomats for key posts even as President Donald Trump continues to refuse to concede.
Biden will name Antony Blinken as Secretary of State and Linda Thomas-Greenfield as ambassador to the UN, bringing deep foreign-policy backgrounds to the nascent administration while providing a sharp contrast with Trump, who distrusted such experience and embraced an "America First" policy that strained longstanding US relationships.
Thomas-Greenfield, a Black woman who served as the assistant Secretary of State for Africa under Obama, was intended to restore morale and help fulfil Biden's pledge to choose a diverse cabinet.

IT Minister Launches International version of UMANG App

On the completion of three years of the UMANG (Unified Mobile Application for New-age Governance) app, the international version of the app has been launched.
The UMANG international version is for select countries including US, UK, Canada, Australia, UAE, Netherlands, Singapore, Australia and New Zealand, and will help Indian international students, NRIs and Indian tourists abroad to avail government of India services anytime.
Launched by Union Minister for Electronics and Information Technology, Communications and Law & Justice, Ravi Shankar Prasad in collaboration with Ministry of External Affairs, the international version of the app will also help in taking India to the world through 'Indian Culture' services available on UMANG and create interest amongst foreign tourists to visit India. Additionally, the government also announced that it is integrating Common Services Centres service into the Umang app.
The international version of the UMANG App can be downloaded by going to the Play Store of specific countries.

India and the EU Hold Consultations on Disarmament and Non-proliferation Matters

India and the European Union held the sixth round of consultations on disarmament and non-proliferation matters.
According to the Ministry of External Affairs (MEA), India and the EU exchanged developments in the area of nuclear, chemical, biological disarmament and non-proliferation.
The consultations involved exchanges on developments in the area of nuclear, chemical, biological disarmament and non-proliferation, conventional weapons, outer space security issues, export control regimes, strategic stability environment and other developments of mutual interest.
The consultations aim at enhancing mutual understanding and appreciation between India and the EU on international security issues. These are part of the broad dialogue architecture with the EU as a key strategic partner of India.
These are part of the broad dialogue architecture with the EU as a key strategic partner of India.

China lashes out at United States withdrawal from "Open Skies Treaty" with Russia

China lashed out at Washington over its withdrawal from the "Open Skies Treaty" with Russia, saying the move undermined military trust and transparency and imperiled future attempts at arms control.
The treaty, to which China is not a signatory, had allowed each country overflight rights to inspect military facilities.
That leaves only one arms-control pact still in force between the former Cold War foes, the New START treaty, which limits the number of nuclear warheads each may have. That treaty will expire in February and the Trump administration had said it was not interested in extending it unless China also joined something Beijing says it will not do.

WEF to Host Online Davos Agenda Meet in January

The World Economic Forum will host a five-day online summit in January 2021, during which heads of state and government will deliver special addresses and engage in dialogue with business leaders at the start of a crucial year to rebuild trust.
Named 'Davos Agenda', the online meeting would take place around the same time—from January 25-29 -- during which the WEF has been holding its Annual Meeting every year in the Swiss ski resort town.
While the WEF's Davos 2020 summit was the last major global event that took place before almost the entire world got locked down due to the COVID-19 pandemic, the next annual meeting has been shifted to May 2021 and is scheduled to be held in Lucerne-Burgenstock, Switzerland.
The 'Davos Agenda' will also mark the launch of WEF's 'Great Reset Initiative' and begin the preparation of the special Annual Meeting in the spring, said the Geneva-based entity, which describes itself as an international organisation for public-private cooperation.

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