General Awareness

INTERNATIONAL AFFAIRS - March 2016

Mar 2016

Jan 05, 2020

Attack On Nankana Sahib Gurdwara: SGPC To Send 4-Member Delegation To Pakistan

A day after a group of local Muslims pelted stones on Gurdwara Nankana Sahib near Lahore and threatened to destroy it, several political leaders cutting across party lines condemned the attack and called on the Indian government to take up the issue with Pakistani authorities to ensure the safety of pilgrims and adequate security for the shrine.
Meanwhile, Shiromani Gurdwara Parbhandhak Committee (SGPC), the apex body which manages Sikh shrines, said it will send a four-member delegation to Pakistan to take stock of the situation in Nankana Sahib. SGPC also plans to take up the matter with the United Nations.

Indian-origin MP To Bid For Labour Leadership

Indian -origin British MP Lisa Nandy has formally launched her bid to replace Jeremy Corbyn as Labour leader, urging the party members to "change course" to avoid becoming "irrelevant" in the wake of the party's worst defeat in over 70 years.
Ms. Nandy has become the fourth Labour hopeful to throw her hat in the ring after Clive Lewis, Jess Phillips and Emily Thornberry.

China Replaces Top Envoy In Hong Kong

China has replaced its top envoy to Hong Kong, the most significant personnel change by Beijing since pro-democracy protests erupted in the city nearly seven months ago.
The removal of the head of the Liaison Office, which represents the central government in semi-autonomous Hong Kong, comes as the city grapples with its biggest political crisis in decades.
Wang Zhimin has been dismissed from his position as head of the Liaison Office and replaced by Luo Huining

Jan 04, 2020

Pakistan Tables Army Chief Tenure Amendment Bill

The Imran Khan government tabled the Pakistan Army (Amendment) Bill, 2020 in parliament after the two main opposition parties assured they would support it.
The amendment is expected to provide clarity on future extensions to the tenures of army chiefs. According to the bill, the army chief's extension will not be challengeable in any court of law in the future. It also states that the matter of an army chief's extension shall not be called into question before any court on any ground whatsoever.
The Pakistan Muslim League-Nawaz (PML-N) offered its unconditional support to the amendment, while the Pakistan Peoples Party (PPP) has asked for is that "the democratic legislative process must be followed".

World Shocked at Killing of Iranian General

Global powers warned that the world has become a more dangerous place and urged restraint after the US assassinated Iran's top general, although Britain and Germany also suggested that Iran shared blame for provoking the targeted killing that dramatically ratcheted up tensions in the Mideast.
China, Russia and France, all permanent members of the UN Security Council, took a dim view of the US airstrike near Baghdad's airport that killed Gen Qassem Soleimani.
But while echoing the concerns of other Security Council members about spiraling tensions, Britain and Germany broke ranks, voicing qualified understanding for the US position. German government spokeswoman Ulrike Demmer described the US strike as a reaction to a whole series of military provocations for which Iran bears responsibility, pointing to attacks on tankers and a Saudi oil facility, among other events.

Gotabaya Rajapaksa Seeks Constitutional and Electoral Reforms

In his first address to Parliament since becoming President, Gotabaya Rajapaksa sought constitutional and electoral reform, for a strong executive and legislature and sovereignty of the people.
The proportional representation electoral system, currently followed in Sri Lanka, allows smaller parties to be represented in the legislature with a minimum vote percentage. In a House that is numerically skewed towards the majority Sinhala-Buddhist community, politicians representing minorities have had reasonable say because of the PR-system.

Ayatollah Khamenei Appoints Esmail Ghaani as Head of Quds Force

Iranian supreme leader Ayatollah Ali Khamenei appointed Deputy Commander of the Quds Force Esmail Ghaani as the head of the unit after Qasem Soleimani was killed in a US airstrike in Baghdad.

Jan 03, 2020

Abu Dhabi Crown Prince Visits Pakistan to Boost Bilateral Ties

Abu Dhabi Crown Prince Sheikh Mohammad bin Zayed Al Nahyan arrived in Islamabad on a day-long visit, amidst criticism of the UAE for siding with Saudi Arabia to put pressure on Pakistan to skip a key conference of Muslim nations in Malaysia.
The visit comes in the wake of the controversy created due to Pakistan skipping the Kuala Lumpur summit to apparently appease Saudi Arabia and the UAE.
Both the leaders discussed regional and international issues of mutual interest as well as ways to enhance bilateral ties.
The UAE is Pakistan's largest trading partner in the Middle East and a major source of investments. The UAE is also among Pakistan's prime development partners in education, health and energy sectors.

Turkey Approves Libya Military Deployment

Turkey's parliament passed a bill approving a military deployment to Libya, aimed at shoring up the UN-backed government in Tripoli.
The beleaguered Tripoli government has been under sustained attack since April 2019 by military strongman General Khalifa Haftar, who is backed by Turkey's regional rivals Saudi Arabia, Egypt and the United Arab Emirates.

Israeli Court Declines to Rule on Netanyahu's Eligibility

Israel's Supreme Court declined to weigh in on whether Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu can return to his post now that he has been indicted, postponing any ruling on his political future until after March elections.
A three-judge panel said that the question of whether an indicted member of parliament can be tapped to form a government is important, but that it would be premature to decide the issue before the vote.
The court had been widely expected to delay any ruling. Judging Netanyahu ineligible would have triggered a major political crisis and exacerbated already strained ties between the government and the judiciary.
Netanyahu was indicted in November on charges of bribery, fraud and breach of trust. Israeli Cabinet members are required to resign if indicted, but the rule does not apply to the Prime Minister. He has continued serving as caretaker Prime Minister after failing to form a government after unprecedented back-to-back elections last year.

Austria's Unlikely Coalition to Unveil Govt. Programme

Austria's conservatives and their Green partners were set to present the government programme of their unprecedented coalition, a plan with right-wing leader Sebastian Kurz's clear imprimatur that could set a European precedent.
The two parties announced that they had agreed to govern together after key election gains in September following a corruption scandal that broke apart 33-year-old Kurz's ruling coalition with the far right.
Kurz -- who has styled himself as a tough anti-immigration fighter -- said that his People's Party and the Greens had succeeded in uniting the best of both worlds in protracted negotiations aimed at protecting the climate and borders.
It is the Greens' first entry into the Austrian government at a national level -- and that in the unlikely marriage of conservatives and ecologists.

Jan 02, 2020

Pakistan Approves Amendment to Army Act

The Pakistan government approved amendments to the Army Act, four weeks after it assured the Supreme Court of passing a legislation on the extension and reappointment of army chief Qamar Javed Bajwa within six months.

Benjamin Netanyahu Will Seek Immunity from Corruption Charges

Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu will seek immunity from charges that accuse him of accepting bribes, fraud and breach of trust. The move will likely delay any trial until after the March elections, when he hopes to have a majority coalition that will shield him from prosecution.
Netanyahu was indicted in November on the corruption charges. After failing to assemble a governing majority following back-to-back elections last year, he will get a third shot at remaining in office in March.
This announcement has essentially turned the upcoming election into a referendum on whether Netanyahu should be granted immunity and remain in office, or step down and stand trial. A recent poll indicated that a majority of Israelis oppose giving him immunity.

Kim Promises to Unveil a New Strategic Weapon

North Korean leader Kim Jong Un said that he sees no reason to continue his self-imposed moratorium on nuclear and long-range missile tests, warning the world will soon see a new strategic weapon unveiled by his country in the near future.

Jan 01, 2020

Taiwan Passes Law against China Influence

Taiwan passed a controversial bill aimed at countering China's influence on the self-ruled island, less than two weeks before it goes to the polls for a presidential election.
The anti-infiltration bill pushed by President Tsai Ing-wen's Beijing-skeptic ruling party became law despite strong opposition from the Kuomintang (KMT).
It bans hostile foreign forces from activities such as campaigning, lobbying, making political donations, disrupting social order or spreading disinformation related to elections.
Violators face a maximum five-year prison term and a fine of up to around $332,000.

US, China to Sign Trade Deal

US President Donald Trump announced that a very large and comprehensive Phase One trade deal will be signed with China at the White House on January 15 and he will travel at a later date to Beijing to begin talks on Phase Two.
The deal is expected to be limited in scope under which China will increase its purchases of American farm produce and the US will put off and partially slash tariffs on goods from China.
The move will bring to an end, officially, a two-and-a-half-year trade war between the world's two largest economies.

EU Chief Doubts Securing Post-Brexit Deal in 2020

European Commission chief Ursula von der Leyen has expressed serious concern over whether the bloc could conclude a post-Brexit trade deal with Britain within the 2020 deadline. Britain is due to leave the European Union on January 31, but will remain in a transitional arrangement until the end of next year while negotiators debate future trade ties. Under the withdrawal agreement which Prime Minister Boris Johnson has agreed with Europe but not yet pushed through parliament, the UK could ask for a one or two year extension. But Johnson, who won a comfortable majority in the UK general election in 2019, insists he will not ask for more time and is preparing legislation to forbid such a move. In this case, negotiators will only have 11 months to conclude a trade agreement, a task that officials have warned is extremely ambitious.

Trump Puts Iran on Notice

President Donald Trump warned Iran that it would be held accountable after protesters attacked the U.S. Embassy in Baghdad in response to recent U.S. airstrikes in Iraq and Syria.
As per Trump, now Iran is orchestrating an attack on the U.S. Embassy in Iraq. They will be held fully responsible. In addition, we expect Iraq to use its forces to protect the Embassy, and so notified.
The Iraqi protesters were reacting to the five airstrikes the U.S. conducted in Iraq and Syria, which took out 25 fighters linked to Kataeb Hezbollah, an Iran-backed militia in Iraq that is part of Iraq's Popular Mobilization Forces. Kataeb Hezbollah and PMF flags were seen carried by some protesters.

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