General Awareness

INTERNATIONAL AFFAIRS - July 2016

Jul 2016

Jan 11, 2023

Nepal's Newly-appointed PM Prachanda Wins Vote of Confidence

Nepal's newly-appointed Prime Minister Pushpa Kamal Dahal 'Prachanda' won the vote of confidence in the House of Representatives.
The CPN-Maoist Centre leader was sworn in as the Prime Minister for the third time on December 26, 2022 after he dramatically walked out of the pre-poll alliance led by the Nepali Congress and joined hands with opposition leader K. P. Sharma Oli.
Out of the 270 members in the House of Representatives (HoR) present during the voting, 268 voted in favour of Prime Minister Prachanda, while 2 voted against him.

Jan 10, 2023

Indian-origin Manpreet Monica Singh Sworn in as 1st female Sikh Judge of USA

Indian-origin Manpreet Monica Singh was sworn in as a Harris County judge, becoming the first female Sikh judge in the US.
Ms. Singh was born and raised in Houston and now lives in Bellaire.
She was sworn in as a judge of the Harris County Civil Court at Law No. 4 in Texas.
Ms. Singh's father immigrated to the US in the early 1970s.
A trial lawyer for 20 years, she has been involved in numerous civil rights organizations at the local, state, and national levels.

Gabon Names Vice-president and New Prime Minister

Gabon's President Ali Bongo appointed the country's first female Prime Minister Rose Christiane Ossouka Raponda to the role of vice-president and named a new PM to replace her.
Ossouka Raponda was appointed in July 2020 after her predecessor stepped down. She was Defence Minister before that.
Former Minister Alain-Claude Bilie By Nze will replace Ossouka Raponda and form a new government.

Jan 09, 2023

Republican Kevin McCarthy New as US House Speaker

Republican Kevin McCarthy was elected Speaker of the US House of Representatives in a historic post-midnight 15th ballot, which elevated him to a powerful position in the chamber and is expected to bring an end to political paralysis that the country has seen for days now.
McCarthy replaced Nancy Pelosi of the Democratic Party, which lost the majority in the House after the November 8 midterm elections wherein the Republicans won 222 seats in the 435-member House against 212 of the Democrats.
McCarthy defeated Hakeem Sekou Jeffries by 216 to 212 votes, in the 15th round of votes.
McCarthy became the 55th House speaker after the fifth-longest contest in history.

Jan 08, 2023

Kyiv Rejects Putin's Russian Orthodox Christmas Truce

Russian President Vladimir Putin ordered his Defence Minister to impose a 36-hour ceasefire on the Ukrainian front line.
The ceasefire, from 12:00 Moscow time, coincides with the Russian Orthodox Christmas.
Putin asked Ukraine to reciprocate, but Kyiv quickly rejected the request.
Ukraine's President Volodymyr Zelensky said that the truce was an attempt to stop his country's military advances in the east of the country.

Afghanistan's Taliban Administration in Oil Extraction Deal with Chinese Company

Afghanistan's Taliban-led administration is to sign a contract with a Chinese company to extract oil from the Amu Darya basin in the country's north.
The contract would be signed with Xinjiang Central Asia Petroleum and Gas Co (CAPEIC), officials told a news conference in Kabul.
It will be the first major public commodities extraction deal the Taliban administration has signed with an foreign company since taking power in 2021.
It also underscores neighbouring China's economic involvement in the region even though the Islamic State militant group has targeted its citizens in Afghanistan.
China has not formally recognised the Taliban administration but it has significant interests in a country at the centre of a region important for its Belt and Road infrastructure initiative.

Jan 05, 2023

Eric Garcetti Renominated US Envoy to India

US President Joe Biden renominated Eric Garcetti as the Ambassador to India among a large number of recommendations for various posts, including several Indian-Americans such as Richard Verma to be Deputy Secretary of State for Management and Resources.
The US had been without an envoy to India for over two years. Besides India, Biden has also approved nominations for Ambassadors to over 20 countries, including the UAE, Kuwait, Turkmenistan, Saudi Arabia, Nigeria, Ethiopia, Colombia, Azerbaijan and Cambodia.

India Takes Charge of APPU in Bangkok, Thailand

India took over the leadership of the Asian Pacific Postal Union (APPU) having its Headquarters in Bangkok, Thailand.
As per the Communications Ministry, the APPU is an intergovernmental organisation of 32-member countries of the Asian-Pacific region.
APPU was founded on July 1, 1982.
The goal of APPU is to extend, facilitate and improve postal relations between member countries and to promote cooperation in the field of postal services. Vinaya Prakash Singh, erstwhile Member (Personnel), Postal Services Board took over the charge of Secretary General of the Union for a tenure of four years.
Secretary, Department of Posts, Vineet Pandey said that this is the first time an Indian is leading an international organization in the postal sector.

Iranian Player Told Not to Return Home over 'Hijab Row'

Iranian chess player Sara Khadem was 'warned not to return to Iran' after she competed without hijab at FIDE World Rapid and Blitz Chess Championships in Almaty, Kazakhstan.
Sara arrived in Spain after receiving what a source close to her said were warnings not to return home for competing without a hijab — a headscarf mandatory under the country's dress codes.

FATF May Greylist Nepal

Nepal is at real risk of being put on the greylist by the Financial Action Task Force (FATF) as there are deficiencies in both its legislation and enforcement of laws related to money laundering and terror financing.
Nepal is struggling to address a number of deficiencies to comply with the standards of the Paris-based regulatory body related to anti-money laundering and terrorist financing and has identified at least 15 weak laws.
The greylisting could be damaging to Nepal's struggling economy which is heavily reliant on foreign aid, remittances and imports. A country on the greylist could potentially face problems such as a lack of trade opportunities, a downgrade of ratings, and a subsequent shrinking of the economy.

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