General Awareness

INTERNATIONAL AFFAIRS - March 2016

Mar 2016

Jul 28, 2020

Hichem Mechichi Tunisia's New Prime Minister

Tunisia's President Kais Saied appointed the Interior Minister, Hichem Mechichi, as the new Prime Minister for the North African country.
Mechichi will succeeded Elyes Fakhfakh, who resigned last week over allegations of conflict of interest.
Fakhfakh's coalition government was elected last year, with his resignation coming after only five months in power. The political row in parliament has deepened with lawmakers demanding the resignation of Speaker Rached Ghannouchi, the leader of the Islamist Ennahda party.
Mechichi served as President's adviser and member of the National Commission of Investigation on Corruption founded in 2011. However, political analysts are worried about his lack of experience in economics, at a time when the Tunisian economy is struggling.

Mahdi Mohammed Gulaid is Somalia's Interim Prime Minister

Somalia's Deputy Prime Minister Mahdi Mohammed Gulaid announced his appointment as the interim Prime Minister following the vote of no confidence against the previous head of government, Hassan Ali Khaire.
Earlier, the country's parliament ousted Khaire by a vote of no confidence.
According to local website Garowe Online, a new Prime Minister will be appointed within a month.

Mali Leader Appoints New Cabinet to Resolve Crisis

Mali's President Ibrahim Boubacar Keïta appointed a slimmed down cabinet to work towards a government of national unity.
It said the new cabinet would include the Prime Minister Boubou Cissé and six other ministers.
It came hours after a summit of West African leaders called for the swift creation of a unity administration and a fresh vote, following disputed elections.
No statement has been made on the other proposals by the regional grouping Ecowas, like the resignation of 31 parliamentarians whose election was disputed and the remodelling of the constitutional court.
The opposition coalition in Mali had earlier rejected a proposal for a national unity government, insisting the President must go.

New Zealand Suspends Hong Kong Extradition Treaty

New Zealand has suspended its extradition treaty with Hong Kong in response to China's new national security law for the territory.
The widely criticised law makes it easier to punish protesters and reduces the city's autonomy.
Travel advice has also been updated to alert New Zealanders to risks presented by the law.
China's embassy in New Zealand said the suspension was a "gross interference in China's internal affairs".
The New Zealand government's decision is a serious violation of international law and basic norms governing international relations.
Canada, Australia and the United Kingdom earlier suspended their extradition treaties with Hong Kong.

Jul 27, 2020

US Sends Envoy to Press for Peace Talks in Afghanistan

Washington dispatched a special envoy for Afghanistan to press for peace talks between the government and Taliban fighters, with the diplomat scheduled to visit Kabul on a trip with stops in five nations.
U.S. Special Representative for Afghanistan Zalmay Khalilzad departed to travel to Doha, Kabul, Islamabad, Oslo and Sofia.
The United States is drawing down its troops in Afghanistan under an agreement struck in February with the Taliban.
The agreement aimed to pave the way for formal peace talks between the insurgents and the Afghan government, and Khalilzad's task is to try and bring both sides to the table.
Khalilzad plans to press for a deal on prisoner exchanges and a reduction in violence, two issues that have hampered progress toward starting peace talks.

Pakistanis Lead al-Qaida Faction, Other Terrorist Groups in Asia: UN Report

According to a UN report, Pakistani nationals remain at the leadership levels in terror groups such as al-Qaida in the Indian Subcontinent, Islamic State in Iraq and the Levant and Khorasan (ISIL-K) and Tehrik-e-Taliban Pakistan, and many of them are yet to be blacklisted.
The 26th report of the Analytical Support and Sanctions Monitoring Team concerning ISIL, al-Qaida and associated individuals and entities said that in April and May, the Afghan special forces conducted a series of countrywide operations and arrested the head of the ISIL-K Aslam Farooqi (also known as Abdullah Orokzai) and his predecessor Zia ul-Haq (also known as Abu Omar Khorasani) and others.

Australia Rejects China's Sea Claims

Australia has formally rejected China's territorial and maritime claims in the South China Sea, aligning itself more closely with the US as tensions rise.
In a declaration to the United Nations, Australia said that the claims, which take in the majority of the sea, had "no legal basis.
It comes after the US called some of China's actions in the area unlawful.
In recent years China has built bases on artificial islands in the sea, saying its rights go back centuries.
Brunei, Malaysia, the Philippines, Taiwan and Vietnam contest China's claims. The countries have wrangled over territory for decades but tensions have steadily increased in recent years, with several maritime confrontations taking place.
Beijing claims a vast area known as the "nine-dash line" and has backed its claims with island-building and patrols. It has built significant military infrastructure, although it insists its intentions are peaceful.

Jul 26, 2020

United States Eases Export Restrictions on Unmanned Drones

In a significant development, the Donald Trump administration relaxed standards for exporting drones to friendly countries.
Under the new policy, drones that fly at speeds below 800 km per hour are no longer subject to the Missile Technology Control Regime (MTCR).
This policy change modernises the approach to implementing the MTCR commitments. It makes it more reflective of the technological realities.
Higher-speed systems such as cruise missiles, hypersonic aerial vehicles, and advanced unmanned combat aerial vehicles are not affected by this revision.

Vietnam Bans Wildlife Imports, Markets Amid New Health Fears

An order signed by Prime Minister Nguyen Xuan Phuc bans all imports of wildlife dead or alive and includes eggs and larvae. It also merits tougher penalties for crimes involving the trade in wildlife.
Vietnam has been a popular destination for wildlife products – often from endangered species – that are used in traditional medicine or in preparing exotic cuisine. The move comes amid increased scrutiny of the health risks of the wildlife trade as the world deals with the new coronavirus, which is thought to have jumped from animals to humans.
The new directive includes recommendations that conservationists have been making for years, including cracking down on domestic markets.

Jul 25, 2020

Shanghai Cooperation Organisation (SCO) Health Minister's Digital Meet

Dr. Harsh Vardhan, Union Minister of Health and Family Welfare digitally participated in the Shanghai Cooperation Organisation (SCO) Health Minister's Digital Meet at Nirman Bhawan-Delhi. The meet was chaired by Mikhail Murashko, Minister of Health of the Russian Federation. The ongoing COVID crisis was the key topic of discussion.
Speaking of India's political commitment to contain the pandemic, he spoke how the Prime Minister has personally monitored the situation and ensured a pre-emptive, pro-active and graded response to prevent the deadly virus from spreading.

Croatia Parliament Approves New Centre-right Government

The Croatian Parliament approved a new government led by a conservative party that won a parliamentary election earlier this month.
Prime Minister Andrej Plenkovic's government won support in the 151-member assembly in a 76-59 vote. The remaining MPs were either not present or abstained from voting.
The new cabinet has 18 ministers, down two from his first government, and four Deputy Prime Ministers, including Boris Milosevic, a Serb.
Gordan Grlic Radman remains Foreign Minister. He is seen as pivotal to keeping public finances on track for Croatia's bid to adopt the euro by 2024.

Tanzania's Former President Benjamin Mkapa Passes Away

Tanzania's former President Benjamin Mkapa died in hospital at Dar es Salaam Hospital where he had been admitted for an undisclosed illness.
Mr. Mkapa became Tanzania's President following the country's first multiparty election in 1995 and went on to lead the country up to 2005.
He is credited for boosting tax collections, instituting austerity measures to curb wasteful expenditure and opening doors to foreign investors.
His reforms were welcomed by the World Bank and International Monetary Fund and partly resulted in the cancellation of Tanzania's foreign debts.
His privatisation policy was however much criticised locally, and he later admitted that although he had good intentions the policy was not well executed.

Jul 24, 2020

China Tells US to Close Consulate in Chengdu

China ordered the United States to close its consulate in the western city of Chengdu, ratcheting up a diplomatic conflict at a time when relations have sunk to their lowest level in decades.
The move was a response to the Trump administration's order this week for Beijing to close its consulate in Houston after Washington accused Chinese agents of trying to steal medical and other research in Texas.
The Chinese foreign ministry appealed to Washington to reverse its wrong decision.
Chinese-U.S. relations have soured amid a mounting array of conflicts including trade, the handling of the coronavirus pandemic, technology, spying accusations, Hong Kong and allegations of abuses against Chinese Muslims.
The United States has an embassy in Beijing and consulates in five other mainland cities — Shanghai, Guangzhou, Chengdu, Shenyang and Wuhan. It also has a consulate in Hong Kong, a Chinese territory.

Trump Launches 'Operation Legend' to Send Federal Agents to more U.S. Cities

U.S. President Donald Trump announced a plan to send federal agents to more U.S. cities to crack down on violent crime in an escalation of his law and order theme going into the November 3 presidential election.
Mr. Trump, joined at a White House event by Attorney General William Barr, unveiled an expansion of the "Operation Legend" program to include cities such as Chicago and Albuquerque, New Mexico, in a further effort by federal officials to tackle violence.
The program involves deploying federal law enforcement agents to assist local police in combating what the Justice Department has described as a surge of violent crime.
New York Governor Andrew Cuomo said that federal intervention was not required to help with violence in New York City, and Chicago Mayor Lori Lightfoot has also urged Mr. Trump not to send unidentified federal agents to her city.
"Operation Legend" is named for LeGend Taliferro, a 4-year-old boy who was shot and killed while he slept, in early June in Kansas City, Missouri.

Nicaragua Signs International Solar Alliance Framework Agreement

Nicaragua became the latest country to join the International Solar Alliance Framework Agreement, an initiative led by India to promote sustainable energy. Nicaragua's Permanent Representative to the United Nations Jaime Hermida Castillo signed the agreement at the Permanent Mission of India to the United Nations. The Central American country is the 87th country to sign the agreement.
Nicaragua recognises the ISA as a key initiative for promoting sustainable energy. The ISA is an alliance of 121 countries, most of them being sunshine countries which lie either completely or partly between the Tropic of Cancer and the Tropic of Capricorn.
The ISA Framework Agreement was opened for signature during the United Nations Climate Change Conference in Morocco in November 2016 and the ISA became a treaty-based intergovernmental body in December 2017. The Founding Conference of the ISA jointly hosted by Modi and French President Emmanuel Macron in New Delhi in March 2018 was attended by leaders of 48 countries, including 25 heads of state and government.

Turkmenistan Gets Observer Status in World Trade Organisation

Turkmenistan became the 25th country who was granted observer status in the World Trade Organisation (WTO) enabling the nation to establish permanent residence at WTO headquarters in Geneva, Switzerland and monitor its proceedings. Turkmenistan also became the last former Soviet republic to establish formal ties with the trade body. This observer status was granted during the 5th virtual session of WTO General Council which was held from WTO headquarters and attended by representatives of its member-states.
Apart from other member states, India also supported Turkmenistan as an observer of WTO.
Turkmenistan, a Central Asian country filed a request for observer status in May, 2020 and expressed willingness to initiate talks on accession to the WTO within five years.

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