General Awareness

INTERNATIONAL AFFAIRS - February 2017

Feb 2017

Feb 07, 2022

US Approves Masood as New Pakistan Envoy

The Biden administration accepted the appointment of Masood Khan as Pakistan's ambassador to the United States.
Mr. Khan would assume his responsibilities in Washington D.C. in due course of time.
Ambassador Khan is a seasoned diplomat who has served Pakistan with distinction and honour.
His appointment comes at a critical juncture when the relationship between Islamabad and Washington is undergoing a transformation after the US withdrawal from Afghanistan.

Argentina Joins China's Belt and Road Initiative

Argentina joined China`s Belt and Road Initiative (BRI) and is set to receive funding worth USD 23.7 billion for various projects from Beijing. This was signed during Argentine President Alberto Fernandez`s visit to China to attend the Beijing Winter Olympics.
The sides signed the Memorandum of Understanding about cooperating within the initiative. The press office said 13 different inter-institutional cooperation documents were signed in different fields including digital economy and innovation.

Elizabeth II Approves Camilla as 'Queen Consort' when Charles is King

Britain's Queen Elizabeth said that she would like Prince Charles' wife Camilla to take the title of Queen Consort when he becomes king.
Charles and Camilla, long-time lovers, were married in 2005 in a civil ceremony in Windsor.
Elizabeth's move reflects a wider acceptance of Camilla's status as a royal.
Camilla - whose current title is Duchess of Cornwall - now regularly represents the royal family alongside Charles during official duties.
Throughout British history, the wife of a king typically is given the title Queen Consort, which has no constitutional powers. At the time of their marriage, it had been officially decided that Camilla would use the title Princess Consort if Charles were to become king.

UN Chief Expects China to Allow Credible Visit by Human Rights Chief

UN Secretary-General Antonio Guterres told the Chinese leadership that he expects Beijing to allow the world body's human rights chief to make a credible visit to China, including Xinjiang where the country is facing serious rights violations against Uygur Muslims.
Guterres, who was in Beijing to attend the opening ceremony of the 2022 Winter Olympics, met Chinese President Xi Jinping and State Councilor and Foreign Minister Wang Yi on the margins of the games.
China had said last month that UN human rights chief Michelle Bachelet is welcome to visit Xinjiang, where Beijing faces serious human rights allegations against Uygur Muslims, after the Winter Olympic Games to promote cooperation and not an investigation based on the presumption of guilt.

NATO Chief Jens Stoltenberg to Head Norway's Central Bank

The North Atlantic Treaty Organization (NATO) chief, Jens Stoltenberg will take over as Norway's central bank Governor at the end of the year. The appointment comes amid escalating tensions between the West and Russia. Western nations fear Moscow has plans to invade Ukraine, which aspires to join the NATO alliance.
But Mr Stoltenberg, a 62-year-old trained economist, insisted that he would stay on as NATO Secretary-General until the end of his term in October. Norway's central bank determines monetary policy but also manages the country's enormous sovereign wealth fund, the biggest in the world.

Feb 06, 2022

US Restores Sanctions Waiver to Iran with Nuclear Talks in Final Phase

President Joe Biden's administration restored sanctions waivers to Iran to allow international nuclear cooperation projects, as indirect American-Iranian talks on reviving the 2015 international nuclear deal with Tehran enter the final stretch.
The waivers had allowed Russian, Chinese and European companies to carry out non-proliferation work to effectively make it harder for Iranian nuclear sites to be used for weapons development.
The waivers were rescinded by the United States in 2019 and 2020 under former President Donald Trump, who pulled out of the nuclear agreement.

Feb 05, 2022

Russia and China Line up against US in 'No Limits' Partnership

China and Russia proclaimed a deep strategic alliance to balance what they portrayed as the malign global influence of the United States as China's President Xi Jinping hosted Russia's Vladimir Putin on the opening day of the Beijing Winter Olympics.
The two countries affirmed that their new relationship was superior to any political or military alliance of the Cold War era.

Feb 04, 2022

Foreign Ministers of Quad Countries likely to Meet in Melbourne this Month

As per reports, a meeting of the foreign ministers of the Quad countries is expected to be held later this month in Melbourne.
The foreign ministers of Quad, comprising India, the US, Australia and Japan, had last met virtually in February 2021.
In March last year, US President Joe Biden hosted the first-ever summit of the Quad leaders in the virtual format that was followed by an in-person summit in Washington in September.
The Quad has been focusing on cooperation in areas such as producing vaccines, connectivity projects, facilitating the mobility of students, and looking at promoting startups and technology collaboration.

Feb 02, 2022

Israel to Bolster Ties with Palestinian Authority Despite no Peace Deal

Israeli Defense Minister Benny Gantz said that Israel will strengthen its ties with the Palestinian Authority despite no intention to negotiate a peace deal with it.
The remarks were made at the Knesset, the Israeli Parliament, in response to a no-confidence motion over Gantz's meetings with Palestinian President Mahmoud Abbas in recent months.

David Attenborough, WHO, Sviatlana Tsikhanouskaya among Nominees for Nobel Peace Prize

British nature broadcaster David Attenborough, the World Health Organization and Belarusian dissident Sviatlana Tsikhanouskaya are among the nominees for this year's Nobel Peace Prize after being backed by Norwegian lawmakers who have a track record of picking the winner.
Also among the candidates for the accolade were Greta Thunberg, Pope Francis, the Myanmar National Unity Government formed by opponents of last year's coup and Tuvalu's Foreign Minister Simon Kofe.
Norwegian lawmakers have nominated an eventual Peace laureate every year since 2014 - with the exception of 2019 - including one of the two laureates last year, Maria Ressa.

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