General Awareness

INTERNATIONAL AFFAIRS - July 2017

Jul 2017

Mar 05, 2023

US Imposes a New Round of Iran Sanctions

The United States imposed a new round of Iran sanctions, targeting the country's oil and petrochemical sales. The sanctions hit a Vietnam-based company, two firms based in China, two others in Iran and one in the United Arab Emirates, accusing them of involvement "in the transport or sale" of Iranian oil and petrochemicals.
According to the state department, the US is committed to significantly reducing Iran's energy exports and will sanction those facilitating its petroleum and petrochemical trade.
Iran has faced an enormous amount of US sanctions since 2018.

Mar 04, 2023

Vo Van Thuong Vietnam's New President

Vo Van Thuong, a member of the Politburo of the Communist Party of Vietnam (CPV), was elected as the new President.
The country's top legislature convened a special meeting and elected Thuong as the new President with an approval rate of 98.38 per cent.
Thuong vowed to be absolutely loyal to the nation, the people and the Constitution of the Socialist Republic of Vietnam, and to work hard to fulfil the duty assigned by the Communist Party of Vietnam.

Belarus Court Sentences Nobel Peace Prize Winner to 10 Years in Prison

A court in Belarus sentenced Nobel Peace Prize winner Ales Bialiatski to 10 years in prison, a verdict likely to be strongly condemned by Western human rights groups.
Bialiatski, a pro-democracy activist and founder of the Viasna human rights group which provided legal and financial help to protesters during a 2020 wave of unrest in Belarus, was convicted of financing protests and tax evasion.
He won the Nobel Peace Prize in 2022.

Mar 03, 2023

Pakistan PM Appoints First Ambassador for Kartarpur Corridor

Pakistan Prime Minister Shehbaz Sharif appointed Sardar Ramesh Singh Arora as the Ambassador-at-Large for Kartarpur Corridor as part of efforts to attract Sikh pilgrims from across the world.
The leading Sikh leader will work in the position in an honorary capacity.
Arora hailing from Kartarpur in Narowal is also the central General Secretary of the Pakistan Muslim League (N) minorities wing. His family has been associated with the protection and welfare of the Sikh holy sites at Kartarpur.
His appointment comes as Kartarpur failed to attract the number of visitors Pakistan authorities had imagined after opening the critical holy site for Sikhs, especially those in India.

Mar 02, 2023

Renjen, Subramaniam to be Members of US President's Export Council

Two Indian Americans Punit Renjen, Rajesh Subramaniam will be members of US President Joe Biden's Export Council.
The President's Export Council is an American government organisation that serves as the principal national advisory committee on international trade.
Indian American Punit Renjen serves as Deloitte Global CEO Emeritus.
The other Indian-American on Biden's list, Raj Subramaniam is President and CEO and a member of the Board of Directors of FedEx Corporation, one of the world's largest transportation companies.

Mumbai Jumps to 37th Place Globally in Price Growth in Luxury Housing

Mumbai's rank improved to 37th from 92nd in a global list of movement in prices of luxury homes as the city saw an appreciation of 6.4 per cent during 2022 calendar year, according to Knight Frank India.
In a virtual conference, property consultant Knight Frank released its 'The Wealth Report 2023'.
As per Knight Frank, the value of Prime International Residential Index (PIRI 100) that tracks the movement in luxury house prices across the world increased by 5.2 per cent YoY (year-on-year) in 2022.
In the report, the consultant analysed prime property price performances in 100 cities. Out of 100, 85 locations recorded positive or flat price growth in 2022.

Nigeria's Bola Tinubu Declared Winner of Presidential Vote

Ruling party candidate Bola Tinubu was declared winner of Nigeria's presidential election, with the two leading opposition candidates already demanding a revote in Africa's most populous nation.
Election officials' overnight announcement was likely to lead to a court challenge by his main opponents Atiku Abubakar and Peter Obi. Abubakar also finished second in the last vote in 2019.
As per reports, Tinubu received 37% of the vote, or nearly 8.8 million, while main opposition candidate Abubakar won 29% with almost 7 million. Third-place finisher Obi took 25% with about 6.1 million.
Tinubu "having satisfied the requirements of the law, was hereby declared the winner and is returned elected," said the country's election chief, Mahmood Yakubu.

Feb 28, 2023

Tagore Memorial Grove Unveiled in US

The Tagore Memorial Grove and walking museum, one of the first in the United States to spread the message of Nobel Laureate Rabindranath Tagore's borderless world, was inaugurated in Houston, Texas.
Several public officials attended the unveiling, including the Consul General of India in Houston, Aseem Mahajan, Fort bend County Judge K. P. George, and Fort bend Commissioner Andy Myers.
The memorial is a collaboration between the Tagore Society of Houston (TSH) and the City of Houston Parks Department.

UK and EU Clinch 'Historic' Brexit Deal over Northern Ireland Trade

Britain and the European Union proclaimed a new chapter in relations as they agreed a crucial overhaul of trade rules in Northern Ireland that aims to ease tensions stoked by Brexit.
Prime Minister Rishi Sunak and European Commission president Ursula von der Leyen adopted the deal at a meeting in Windsor.
The deal follows more than a year of tense talks over the "Northern Ireland Protocol", which has unsettled the province 25 years on from a historic peace deal that ended three decades of armed conflict.

Biden Unveils Conventional Arms Transfer Policy

U.S. President Joe Biden's administration unveiled a long-awaited overhaul of arms export policy with increased emphasis on human rights, three State Department officials familiar with the new Conventional Arms Transfer (CAT) policy told.
The CAT policy covers review of security assistance, government-to-government weapons transfers and licensed commercial sales of U.S.-origin military equipment and services overseen by the State Department as well as the Defense Department and Department of Commerce, including firearms commonly available in the United States.
Under the new policy, a weapons transfer will not be approved if the State Department assesses the arms "more likely than not" will be used to commit or facilitate genocide, crimes against humanity, breaches of the Geneva conventions, or serious violations of international law.

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