General Awareness

INTERNATIONAL AFFAIRS - December 2017

Dec 2017

Feb 07, 2023

China and Australia Trade Ministers Hold their First Meeting since 2019

Australian and Chinese trade ministers held their first bilateral meeting in three years as Australia urged China to lift official and unofficial barriers that are costing exporters 20 billion Australian dollars ($14 billion) a year.
China thawed its diplomatic freeze on Australia since Prime Minister Anthony Albanese's center-left Labor Party was elected in May for the first time in nine years.
Trade Minister Don Farrell said that he and his Chinese counterpart Wang Wentao had agreed to enhance dialogue at all levels as a pathway "towards the timely and full resumption of trade."

Turkey Earthquake: Historical ''Gaziantep Castle'' in South-eastern Turkey Collapses

The partial destruction of a Roman-era castle 'Gaziantep Castle' in the Turkish city of Gaziantep led to fears that two earthquakes that struck may have damaged other priceless monuments in Turkey and Syria, areas rich in cultural heritage.
Photos of Gaziantep Castle, considered one of the best-preserved citadels in Turkey, showed parts of its stone walls had cascaded down the side of the fort.
Syria and Turkey are considered cradles of human civilisation and home to some of the world's most precious relics of antiquity, boasting several UNESCO world heritage sites, including the ancient city of Aleppo, already ravaged by the Syrian civil war.

Feb 06, 2023

India, France, UAE Establish Trilateral Cooperation Initiative

India, France and the United Arab Emirates (UAE) announced the creation of a formal trilateral cooperation initiative for projects in solar and nuclear energy, the fight against climate change and joint production of military hardware.
The initiative will also act as a platform to bolster cooperation on sustainable projects between the development agencies of the three countries, which will also work to align their economic, technological and social policies with the objectives of the Paris Agreement.
The initiative follows the first meeting of the foreign ministers of India, France and the UAE on the margins of the UN General Assembly in New York on September 19, 2022. External Affairs Minister S. Jaishankar and his counterparts from France and the UAE – Catherine Colonna and Sheikh Abdullah bin Zayed Al Nahyan – adopted a roadmap for implementing the initiative.
The three Foreign Ministers had agreed at their meeting last year to establish the trilateral cooperation initiative in line with the shared desire to promote international stability and prosperity and to build on constructive and collaborative ties between the three countries.

U.S. Shoots Down Chinese Balloon over the Atlantic

The United States downed a suspected Chinese spy balloon off the Carolina coast on orders from President Joe Biden after it traversed sensitive military sites across North America, becoming the latest flashpoint in tensions between Washington and Beijing.
This is not the first time Chinese spy balloons have crossed into U.S. airspace in recent years. At least three times during the Trump administration and at least one other time during Biden's time as President they've seen balloons cross, but not for this long.
China denied any claims of spying and said it is a civilian-use balloon intended for meteorology research. The Ministry of Foreign Affairs emphasized that the balloon's journey was out of its control and urged the U.S. not to "smear" it because of the balloon.

PM Modi Emerges most Popular Global Leader

Prime Minister Narendra Modi was pegged as the world's most popular leader with an approval rating of 78 per cent as per a survey by a US-based consulting firm 'Morning Consult.'
As per the rating PM Modi's ratings trumped those of other leaders including US President Joe Biden, French President Emmanuel Macron and UK Prime Minister Rishi Sunak. The poll surveyed 22 global leaders for the ratings.
The "Global Leader Approval" survey was based on data collected from January 26-31 this year (2023).
Mexican President Andrés Manuel López Obrador came in second with 68 per cent ratings and Swiss President Alain Berset occupied the third position with 62 per cent approval rating.

Feb 05, 2023

Muraleedharan Attendd Lanka's Independence Day Celebrations

State Minister for External Affairs V. Muraleedharan represented India at Sri Lanka's 75th Independence Day celebrations held on February 4 and hold bilateral interactions with President Ranil Wickremesinghe and Foreign Minister Ali Sabry.
Along with Muraleedharan, several other foreign dignitaries, including the head of the Commonwealth Patricia Scotland attended the main event in the capital, Colombo.

Feb 04, 2023

Four Indian-Americans Appointed to US House Panels

Four prominent Indian-American lawmakers, Pramila Jayapal, Ami Bera, Raja Krishnamoorthi and Ro Khanna, were appointed members of three key House panels, reflecting the growing influence of the community in US politics.
Congresswoman Jayapal was named Ranking Member of the powerful House Judiciary Committee's panel on Immigration, making her the first immigrant to serve in a leadership role for the subcommittee.
Jayapal representing the 7th Congressional District of Washington State succeeded Congresswoman Zoe Lofgren to serve on the subcommittee on Immigration Integrity, Security, and Enforcement.
Bera was appointed as a member of the US House Permanent Select Committee on Intelligence, which is charged with providing oversight of the country's intelligence activities.
Krishnamoorthi was made Ranking Member of a newly created House committee on China that will look into various aspects of Chinese behaviour.
Congressman Ro Khanna was also made a member of this new committee. Krishnamoorthi is the four-term Congressman representing the eight Congressional districts of Illinois, while Khanna is the four-term lawmaker representing the 17th Congressional district of California.

Feb 03, 2023

Erdogan Says Turkey Positive on Finland's NATO bid, Not Sweden's

Turkey looks positively on Finland's application for NATO membership, but does not support Sweden's bid, Turkish President Tayyip Erdogan said.
Sweden and Finland applied last year to join the trans-Atlantic defence pact after Russia invaded Ukraine, but faced unexpected objections from Turkey and have since sought to win its support.
Ankara wants Helsinki and Stockholm in particular to take a tougher line against the Kurdistan Workers' Party (PKK), which is considered a terror group by Turkey and the European Union, and another group it blames for a 2016 coup attempt.
The three nations reached an agreement on a way forward in Madrid last June, but Ankara suspended talks last month as tensions rose following protests in Stockholm in which a far-right Danish politician burned a copy of the Muslim holy book, the Koran.
Erdogan signalled that Ankara could agree to Finland joining NATO ahead of Sweden. But Finland's Foreign Minister Pekka Haavisto said his country was sticking to its plan to apply jointly with Sweden.
Of NATO's 30 members, only Turkey and Hungary are yet to ratify the Nordic countries' memberships.

India to be the Theme Country at 2025 Madrid International Book Fair

India will be invited as the focal country at the Madrid International Book Fair in 2025, the Ambassador of Spain to the country Jose Maria Ridao said.
Spain is the theme country at the 46th International Kolkata Book Fair.
We are inviting India as the theme country at the Madrid International Book Fair in 2025, said Ridao.

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