General Awareness

INTERNATIONAL AFFAIRS - May 2017

May 2017

Jun 22, 2020

Putin May Seek another Term if Constitutional Changes Pass

As per reports, Vladimir Putin is considering running for a new term as Russia`s President if voters approve constitutional changes that would enable him to do so.
Russia will hold a nationwide vote from June 25 to July 1 on proposed changes to the Constitution, including an amendment that would allow Putin to seek two more six-year terms as President when his current mandate ends in 2024.
Opponents say the reforms are designed to allow Putin to keep power until 2036 and amount to a constitutional coup. The Kremlin says they are needed to strengthen the role of parliament and improve social policy and public administration.
The changes that Russians will vote on, already approved by parliament and the Constitutional Court, would reset Putin`s presidential term tally to zero. He would not be able to seek a new term under current constitutional limits.

Indian Attends 32nd FATF Meet

Indian officials, including representatives from enforcement agencies, have participated in the 32nd special Eurasian Group on Combating Money Laundering and Financing of Terrorism (EAG) plenary meeting 2020, under the aegis of the Financial Action Task Force (FATF).
The virtual meet, chaired by the EAG Chairman Mr. Yury Chikhanchin (Russian Federation) and the EAG Deputy Chairman Mr. Farhod Bilolov (Republic of Tadjikistan), was to be held in China in June 2020. However, due to the coronavirus (COVID-19) pandemic, the FATF decided to cancel the joint Plenary meeting.
The meeting witnessed the approval of ML/TF (Money laundering /terrorist financing) risk assessment methodology in the Eurasian region along with the information collection methods.
It saw the adoption of EAG Annual Report for 2019 and the EAG Budget for 2021, as well as approved amendments to a number of current EAG documents governing the EAG Secretariat's activities.
The EAG is a regional body consisting of 9 nations namely India, Russia, China, Kazakhstan, Kyrgyzstan, Tajikistan, Turkmenistan, Uzbekistan and Belarus. It is an associate member of the FATF.

Jun 21, 2020

Beijing to Set Up Security Office in HK

China unveiled details of the controversial new security law for Hong Kong amid international criticism that it will corrode the wide-ranging freedoms enjoyed by residents of the global financial hub.
Details of the new law includes setting up of a security office in Hong Kong to handle crimes against national security. The local government must establish new institutions to protect national security and allow mainland agencies to operate in the city when needed.
Hong Kong's chief executive, currently the embattled Carrie Lam, will have the power to appoint judges to hear cases related to national security.
According to Xinhua, for Hong Kong laws that are not in line with this (national security) law, this law's requirements will apply, and the right to interpret this law lies with the National People's Congress Standing Committee. National security activities would protect human rights and freedom of speech and assembly.

China Offers Bangladesh Tarrif Exemption

In a bid to woo Bangladesh, China has provided a huge trade boost to the country by announcing tariff exemption for 97 per cent of Bangladeshi products effective from July 1.
The decision comes one month after Bangladesh Prime Minister Sheikh Hasina and Chinese President Xi Jinping held a discussion to upgrade their bilateral relations during the COVID-19 pandemic.
Currently, 3095 Bangladeshi products enjoy duty-free access to Chinese market under Asia-Pacific Trade Agreement (APTA). With the new announcement, 97 per cent of Bangladeshi products will join this zero-tariff club from July 1 that raised the numbers of Bangladeshi products with zero duty access to Chinese market to 8,256.

Jun 20, 2020

India Will be United Nations Security Council President for August 2021

India, which has been elected as a non-permanent member of the Security Council, will serve as the president of the powerful 15-nation UN body for the month of August, 2021.
The presidency of the Council is held by each of the members in turn for one month, following the English alphabetical order of the member states' names.
India will preside over the Council again for a month in 2022.
India, Norway, Ireland, Mexico and Kenya were elected as the non-permanent members of the UNSC for a two-year term beginning January 1, 2021.

Global Status Report on Preventing Violence Against Children 2020

According to the first report of its kind from the UN, half of the world's children — one billion every year — are affected by physical, sexual or psychological violence, suffering injuries and death because countries have failed to follow established strategies to protect them.
While nearly all countries (88%) have laws in place to protect minors, less than half (47%) say they strongly enforce them, said the Global Status Report on Preventing Violence Against Children 2020.
The report — launched by the World Health Organisation, the UNICEF, the UNESCO, the Special Representative of the UN Secretary-General on Violence against Children and the End Violence Partnership — charted progress in 155 countries against the "INSPIRE" framework, a set of seven strategies for preventing and responding to violence against children.
The report signalled a clear need in all countries to scale up efforts to implement them. It included the first ever global homicide estimates specifically for children under 18 years of age — previous estimates were based on data that included 18 to 19-year olds.

India Second Major Driver of Global Energy Consumption in 2019 After China

According to the 69th edition of "Statistical Review of World Energy 2020", which collects and analyses energy data for 2019 , released by UK (United Kingdom) based oil and gas company BP plc, India was the 2nd major market after China to increase primary energy consumption in the year 2019.
India's position at total energy consumption: On the other hand, India's energy consumption in 2019 was the third largest (34.06 EJ-an increase of 2.3%) only after China (141.70 EJ) and United States (94.65 EJ). Despite, the rate of growth in energy consumption in the year 2019 has been slower than in 2018.

Jun 19, 2020

President of Kyrgyzstan Signs Decrees Appointing Members of Government

President of Kyrgyzstan Sooronbai Jeenbekov signed decrees on the appointment of members of the Government.
Taalaibek Temiraliev became the head of the Cabinet's Office, Chingiz Aidarbekov became the Minister of Foreign Affairs, Kashkar Dzhunushaliev became the Head of the Ministry of Internal Affairs, Marat Dzhamankulov was appointed the Minister of Justice, Baktygul Jeenbaeva was appointed the Minister of Finance, and Sanzhar Mukanbetov was appointed the Minister of Economy and many more were appointed.
The Parliament of Kyrgyzstan approved the candidacy of Kubatbek Boronov for the post of head of the Cabinet, as well as the composition and structure of the Government. At least 105 deputies voted affirmatively.

Bozkir Elected President of 75th UN General Assembly

The UN General Assembly elected Turkish diplomat Volkan Bozkir to be its president ahead of the 75th General Debate in September.
In a secret ballot vote Bozkir, who was unopposed for the post, received 178 ballots in support as 11 nations abstained, Anadolu Agency reported.
Bozkir is currently serving as a Justice and Development (AK) Party lawmaker from Istanbul and head of the Turkish Parliament's Foreign Affairs Committee.
He was elected to the Turkish legislature in 2011 following nearly 40 years in the foreign service that included posts in Germany, Iraq, New York and Romania.
Bozkir is the first Turkish national to head the General Assembly. He is expected to take office in September this year and hold the post for one year.

Jun 18, 2020

Myanmar Govt. Forms Tribunal to Probe China-funded City Project

Myanmar government's discomfort with China is on the rise. After Myanmar's auditor general in a startling announcement cautioned government officials about continued reliance on Chinese loans, the Myanmar government has formed a tribunal to investigate irregularities surrounding a controversial China-backed city development project near the Thai border in Karen State.
The project has been criticised due to a lack of transparency, land confiscations, confusion over the scale of construction and the growing influx of Chinese money as well as suspected illicit activity and local concerns about the social impacts of casino businesses.
The planned mega resort and city expansion project is controlled by the Karen State Border Guard Force, a Myanmar military-backed armed group led by Colonel Chit Thu and formerly known as the Democratic Karen Buddhist Army (DKBA).

World Competitiveness Index 2020

According to the 32nd edition of edition of World Competitiveness Index 2020, which ranked performance of 63 economies across the globe, prepared by Switzerland-based International Institute for Management and Development (IMD)'s World Competitiveness Center (WCC), the Indian economy remained at 43rd position this year. While Singapore continues to occupy the first place in the list due to its strong economic performance comes from robust international trade and investment, employment and labor market measures.
Some of India's traditional weaknesses in terms of competitive power, such as weak infrastructure and inadequate investment in education, still persist.
India ranks next to China (20th rank) in the BRICS (Brazil, Russia, India, China and South Africa) nations, where Russia ranks 50th, Brazil 56th and South Africa 59th.
Even though India's Position remains unchanged in the 2020 list, it's performance has improved in areas such as long-term employment growth, current account balances, long-term employment growth, high technology exports, foreign exchange reserves, public spending on education, political stability and total productivity.

Nepal's Parliament Approves New Map

Nepal's upper house of Parliament unanimously voted to amend the Constitution to update the country's new political map, laying claim over three strategically key areas along the border with it.
India has already termed as "untenable" the "artificial enlargement" of territorial claims by Nepal after its Lower House of Parliament unanimously approved the new political map of the country featuring Lipulekh, Kalapani and Limpiyadhura areas which India maintains belong to it.
The National Assembly, or the Upper House of the Nepalese parliament, unanimously passed the Constitution amendment bill providing for the inclusion of the country's new political map in its national emblem.

Bill to Punish China over Crackdown on Uyghur Muslims

US President Donald Trump has signed into law a legislation that condemns the gross human rights violations of Uyghur minority groups in China's restive Muslim-majority Xinjiang region, paving the way for imposing sanctions against senior Chinese officials.
The Uyghur Human Rights Policy Act, 2020 holds accountable the perpetrators of human rights violations and abuses such as the systematic use of indoctrination camps, forced labour and intrusive surveillance to eradicate the ethnic identity and religious beliefs of Uyghurs and other minorities in China.
However, a section of the Act purports to limit his discretion to terminate inadmissibility sanctions under the Act.

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