General Awareness

INTERNATIONAL AFFAIRS - August 2018

Aug 2018

Sep 24, 2021

US Special Envoy to Haiti Resigns

The Biden administration's special envoy to Haiti has resigned, protesting inhumane large-scale expulsions of Haitian migrants to their homeland wracked by civil strife and natural disaster.
Daniel Foote was appointed to the position in July, following the assassination of Haiti's President. Even before the migrant expulsions from the small Texas border town of Del Rio, the career diplomat was known to be deeply frustrated with what he considered a lack of urgency in Washington and a glacial pace on efforts to improve conditions in Haiti.

German election: Who could succeed Angela Merkel as chancellor?

The race to succeed Angela Merkel as German chancellor is wide open, but the rivals all face the same tough challenge.
Mrs. Merkel has dominated German politics for 16 years as chancellor. Her would-be successors have to make their mark before the September federal election.
Some of the contenders are:.
Mr. Laschet the front runner but then his campaign faltered, mostly as a result of his own unforced errors. However, he is not out of the race.
Ms. Baerbock is the only woman in the race to succeed Angela Merkel, she is the Greens' first-ever candidate for chancellor. She has been an MP in the Bundestag since 2013.
Olaf Scholz has had a succession of senior posts in German politics. He is currently German Finance Minister and Chancellor Merkel's deputy.

UN chief Appoints Nobel Laureate Kailash Satyarthi as Sustainable Development Goals Advocate

Nobel Peace Laureate Kailash Satyarthi has been appointed by UN Secretary-General Antonio Guterres as a Sustainable Development Goals (SDG) Advocate ahead of the start of the 76th UN General Assembly.
Guterres appointed Satyarthi, STEM activist Valentina Munoz Rabanal, Microsoft President Brad Smith and K-pop superstars BLACKPINK as new SDG Advocates.
The SDG Advocates use their considerable spheres of influence to reach new constituencies to act now and keep the promise of the Sustainable Development Goals for people and for the planet.
Satyarthi, the 2014 Nobel Peace Prize winner from India, will focus on protecting and promoting the rights of children around the world.

Narayan Khadka Nepal's New Foreign Minister

Senior Nepali Congress leader Narayan Khadka has been appointed Nepal's new Foreign Minister.
President Bidya Devi Bhandari appointed Khadka on the recommendation of the government led by Prime Minister Sher Bahadur Deuba.
Khadka was administered the oath of office and secrecy by President Bhandari during an official ceremony at the Sheetal Niwas.
Prime Minister Deuba has been holding the portfolio till now.
The post of the Foreign Minister had been vacant for more than two months after the formation of the new government led by Deuba.

Sep 23, 2021

Bulgaria Re-appoints Caretaker PM Ahead of Third Election of 2021

Bulgarian President Rumen Radev re-appointed caretaker premier Stefan Yanev to lead an interim government until the country holds its third set of parliamentary elections this year in November, following inconclusive votes in April and July.
The European Union's poorest member state has been struggling to form a regular government after voting out former centre-right prime minister Boyko Borissov following almost a decade of political dominance.

WHO Appoints Gordon Brown as Ambassador

The World Health Organization (WHO) announced the appointment of Gordon Brown, former Prime Minister of the United Kingdom, as its ambassador for Global Health Financing.
According to the WHO, Brown has played an instrumental role in trying to get rich countries as well as the private sector to ensure equitable distribution of the novel coronavirus disease (COVID-19) vaccines.
The former UK PM said that the failure of Boris Johnson, Joe Biden and European Union leaders to agree on a plan to distribute the spare doses meant the world was facing a vaccine waste disaster.
In this role, he will elevate and support WHO's work to raise awareness internationally on the great need for sustained global health financing, particularly from G20 and G7 countries.

Sep 22, 2021

Taliban Appoints Deputy Ministers

The Taliban announced a list of deputy ministers, failing to name any women, despite an international outcry when they presented their all-male Cabinet ministers earlier this month.
The list was presented by government spokesman Zabihullah Mujahid at a conference in the Afghan capital, Kabul.
The list of deputy ministers signals that the Taliban have not been swayed by the international criticism and that they're doubling down on their current hard-line path despite initial promises of inclusivity and upholding women's rights.
According to Mujaheb, the newly-formed Taliban government is an interim one and will include women, minorities and professionals over a period of time.

Putin's Party Wins Election

Opponents accused Russian authorities of mass fraud on Monday after the ruling United Russia party, which supports President Vladimir Putin, won a bigger than expected parliamentary majority despite unease over living standards.
With 99.9% of ballots counted, the Central Election Commission said that United Russia had won nearly 50% of the vote, with its nearest rival, the Communist Party, taking just under 19%.
The scale of the victory means United Russia will have more than two-thirds of deputies in the 450-seat State Duma Lower House of parliament. This will enable it to continue to push through laws without having to rely on other parties.

Taliban Nominates Suhail Shaheen as Afghanistan's UN Ambassador

The Taliban nominated their Doha-based spokesman Suhail Shaheen as Afghanistan's UN ambassador. This comes after the Taliban said that they wanted to address world leaders at United Nations.
Meanwhile, Qatar`s Emir Sheikh Tamim bin Hamad Al Thani urged world leaders not to boycott the Taliban. The ruling emir of Qatar urged world leaders gathered at the United Nations against turning their backs on Afghanistan`s Taliban rulers.

Justin Trudeau's Liberals Win Canada Election

Canadians gave Prime Minister Justin Trudeau's Liberal Party a victory in parliamentary elections, but his gamble to win a majority of seats appeared to have failed.
The Liberals were on track to win the most seats of any party. Trudeau channeled the star power of his father, the Liberal icon and late Prime Minister Pierre Trudeau, when he first won election in 2015 and now appeared to have led his party to the top finish in two elections since.
The Liberals were leading in 148 ridings, the Conservatives in 103, the Quebec-based Bloc Quebecois in 28 and the leftist New Democratic Party in 22.

Sep 21, 2021

Taliban: No Country Should Ask Us to Form Inclusive Government

Days after Pakistan Prime Minister Imran Khan's comments over the government formed in Afghanistan, the Taliban expressed that countries have no right to ask the Islamic Emirate to establish an inclusive government in Afghanistan.
The remarks came from Taliban spokesperson and Deputy Information Minister Zabihullah Mujahid after Pakistan and several other countries reiterated the Taliban to form an inclusive government in Afghanistan.

Iran Becomes 9th Member of the Shanghai Cooperation Organisation

Iran was officially admitted as a full member of the Shanghai Cooperation Organisation (SCO). The decision to admit Iran as a full member was declared in the 21st summit of the SCO leaders in Dushanbe, Tajikistan. At the end of the 21st Summit of the Shanghai Cooperation Organisation (SCO), the leaders of the eight main members of the organisation agreed to change the membership of the Islamic Republic of Iran from an observer member to a full member and signed the relevant documents.
The Shanghai Cooperation Organization (SCO), or Shanghai Pact, is a Eurasian political, economic, and security alliance. It is the world's largest regional organisation in geographic scope and population.
The SCO is the successor to the Shanghai Five, a mutual security agreement formed in 1996 between China, Kazakhstan, Kyrgyzstan, Russia, and Tajikistan. On 15 June 2001, the leaders of these nations and Uzbekistan met in Shanghai to announce a new organisation with deeper political and economic cooperation; the SCO established the following year with the signing of its charter, which entered into force on 19 September 2003. Its membership has since expanded to eight states, with India and Pakistan joining on 9 June 2017.

World's Oldest Certified Living Identical Twins

Two Japanese sisters have been certified by Guinness World Records as the world's oldest living identical twins, aged 107 years and 330 days. The announcement coincided with Respect for the Aged Day, a national holiday in Japan.
Sisters Umeno Sumiyama and Koume Kodama were born on Shodoshima Island in western Japan on November 5, 1913.
The sisters as of September 1 broke the previous record of 107 years and 175 days set by famous Japanese twin sisters Kin Narita and Gin Kanie.

Sep 20, 2021

Voters Choose New Hong Kong Electors

Select Hong Kong residents voted for members of the Election Committee that will choose the city's leader in the first polls following reforms meant to ensure candidates with Beijing loyalty.
The Election Committee will select 40 of 90 lawmakers in the city's legislature during elections in December, as well as elect the Hong Kong leader during polls in March next year.
In May, the legislature amended Hong Kong's electoral laws to ensure that only patriots, people who are loyal to China and the semi-autonomous territory, will rule the city. The committee also was expanded to 1,500 members, from 1,200, and the number of direct voters for committee seats was reduced from about 246,000 to less than 8,000.

UNSC Extends Mandate for its Assistance Mission in Afghanistan

The UN Security Council extended for six months the mandate of the United Nations Assistance Mission in Afghanistan (UNAMA), unanimously voting on a resolution that emphasises the importance of the establishment of an inclusive and representative government.
The 15-nation Council voted on the draft resolution that extended the mandate of UNAMA until March 17, 2022.
The resolution, stressing the important role that the United Nations will continue to play in promoting peace and stability in Afghanistan, recognises the need for strengthened efforts to provide humanitarian assistance to Afghanistan and the important coordination role of the United Nations, and reaffirming that the effective delivery of humanitarian assistance requires all parties to allow full, safe and unhindered humanitarian access, for United Nations humanitarian agencies and other humanitarian actors.

Manny Pacquiao to Run for Philippines President

Philippine boxing star Manny Pacquiao will run for President in next year's election.
He was nominated as a candidate by a faction of the ruling party, PDP-Laban.
On top of a glittering career as a fighter, Pacquiao is a senator in the Philippines' parliament.
Incumbent Rodrigo Duterte is barred from another term but has been picked by a rival party faction to run for vice-president, a move critics say is an attempt to cling to power.

France Pulls Out of UK Defence Talks amid Row

France's Defence Minister has cancelled talks with her UK counterpart amid the row prompted by a new security deal between Britain, the US and Australia.
Paris is angry after Australia signed the Aukus pact to build nuclear-powered submarines, pulling out of a major contract with France in the process.
UK PM Boris Johnson said that France had nothing to worry about from the deal.
But Florence Parly's meeting with UK Defence Secretary Ben Wallace in London this week has been called off.
The Aukus agreement brokered last week, widely seen as an effort to counter China's influence in the contested South China Sea, ended a deal worth $37bn (£27bn) signed by Australia in 2016 for France to build 12 conventional submarines.

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