General Awareness

INTERNATIONAL AFFAIRS - May 2017

May 2017

Jul 11, 2018

Annual Military Exercises Suspended

South announced that it would suspend its military exercises scheduled for August in order to facilitate talks on denuclearisation between North Korea and the US.

Iran Will End Special Privileges to India

As per reports, Iran will end special privileges to India if Delhi tried to replace Iranian crude with supplies from Saudi Arabia, Russia, and the United States.

Trump Picks Brett Kavanaugh for Court

President Donald Trump nominated Brett Kavanaugh, an influential conservative who was a White House aide to former President George W. Bush, for the Supreme Court of the United States (SCOTUS).

Mr. Kavanaugh faces a tough battle for confirmation by the U.S. Senate, where the Republicans have a narrow majority. If confirmed, Mr. Kavanaugh would replace long-serving conservative Justice Anthony Kennedy, who announced his retirement on June 27.

Appointed by Mr. Bush, Mr. Kavanaugh has been a judge of the U.S. Court of Appeals for the District of Columbia Circuit since 2006.

Global Innovation Rankings

As per the latest Global Innovation Rankings (GII) released in New York, India has been placed at 57th position and China at 17th position.

India was placed 60th and China 22nd in their last year rankings.

Switzerland retained its number-one spot in the GII ranking and figured with Netherlands, Sweden, the United Kingdom, Singapore, United States of America, Finland, Denmark, Germany and Ireland in the list of top 10 nations.

Sharif on Exit Control List

The Pakistani government put the names of ousted Prime Minister Nawaz Sharif and his daughter Maryam Nawaz on the exit control list (ECL) to prevent them from flying abroad after their return to the country on Friday.

The move came after the accountability court in Islamabad convicted Mr. Sharif and Ms. Maryam in the Avenfield properties corruption case and sentenced them to 10 and 7 years jail respectively. Persons put on the ECL are prohibited from leaving Pakistan.

Jul 10, 2018

China Launches Two Satellites for Pakistan

China successfully launched two remote sensing satellites for its "all-weather" ally Pakistan, which will also help the two countries monitor progress as they build the strategic USD 50 billion China-Pakistan Economic Corridor. The launch of the two satellites marks yet another space cooperation between China and Pakistan since the launch of PAKSAT-1R, a communication satellite, in August 2011. The satellites, PRSS-1 and PakTES-1A, were launched from the Jiuquan Satellite Launch Centre in northwest China using a Long March-2C rocket, staterun Xinhua. The PRSS-1 is China's first optical remote sensing satellite sold to Pakistan.

UK Foreign Secretary Resigns

Foreign Secretary Boris Johnson quit over Prime Minister Theresa May's plans to leave the European Union, the second resignation in a day, leaving the British leader's Brexit plans in crisis. The two resignations (David Davis and Boris Johnson) leave May badly exposed at the top of a government unable to unite over Britain's biggest foreign and trading policy shift in almost half a century.

Jul 09, 2018

Africa A Major Buyer of Chinese Weapons

At a time when the African continent as a whole reduced its imports of arms and ammunitions from foreign countries, China has emerged as a major player - increasing its weapons exports to the continent by 55% between 2013 and 2017 as compared to the previous five years.

As per security analysts, the surge of Chinese weapons in Africa is largely due to Beijing's push to make the country a major weapons manufacturing hub.

Jul 08, 2018

Brexit Plan Gets Cabinet Approval

Industry and European leaders have given a cautious welcome to an agreement within Britain's Cabinet on the nation's Brexit strategy. It will see an EU-U.K. Free Trade Area and Britain remaining closely aligned to the EU's single market on agriculture and goods via a "common rule book," though the services sector will be excluded.

Britain would also remain within a "combined customs territory".

Ceasefire Deal between Rebels and Syrian Government

According to reports, thousands of displaced Syrians were heading home on Saturday after rebels and the government reached a ceasefire deal in the south following more than two weeks of deadly bombardment.

Under the agreement announced between rebels and regime ally Moscow, opposition fighters will hand over territory and heavy weapons in Daraa province near the Jordanian border.

Jul 07, 2018

Nawaz Sharif Sentenced to 10 Years in Jail

An anti-corruption court in Islamabad sentenced former Pakistan Prime Minister Nawaz Sharif to 10 years in prison. His daughter Maryam Nawaz was sentenced to seven years and son-in-law Captain Safdar (retd.) to one year in jail.

He was ousted from his third term as Prime Minister by the Supreme Court last year following the Panama Papers revelations that he had stashed assets abroad through offshore companies. The court banned him from politics for life.

First Shots in Tariff War

The U.S. and China launched tit-for-tat tariffs on each others' imports, the opening shots in what Beijing called the largest trade war in economic history.

The U.S. pulled the trigger on 25% duties on $34 billion in Chinese machinery, electronics and hi-tech equipment, including autos, computer hard drives and LEDs.

The Foreign Ministry in Beijing said retaliatory measures "took effect immediately," with state news agency Xinhua confirming they involved 25% tariffs on an equal amount of goods.

Russia Raises Duties on US Goods

Russian Prime Minister Dmitry Medvedev has signed a decision imposing extra duties of 25-40 per cent on some imports from the United States in response to Washington`s tariff move.

The extra duties will apply to imports of fiber optics, equipment for road construction, oil and gas industry, metal processing and mining.

Support Offered to Iran

Iran's remaining partners in the 2015 nuclear deal vowed to keep the energy exporter plugged into the global economy despite the U.S. withdrawal and sanctions threat.

Britain, France and Germany along with Russia and China met with Iran in Vienna to offer economic benefits and assurances that would lessen the blow of sweeping U.S. sanctions announced by Mr. Trump.

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