General Awareness

INTERNATIONAL AFFAIRS - August 2018

Aug 2018

Jun 01, 2021

Kuwait Resumes Visas for Pakistani Citizens after ten-year Suspension

After a ten-year of suspension, Kuwait announced the resumption of visas, including in family and business categories for Pakistani citizens.
This decision was taken after a meeting between Pakistan Interior Minister Sheikh Rashid and Kuwaiti Prime Minister Sheikh Sabah Al-Khalid Al-Sabah.
It further reported that Kuwait had banned work visas for Pakistan in 2011 and despite attempts by previous governments the restrictions could not be lifted.

May 31, 2021

New Zealand Hosts Australia PM in First Meeting since Covid Outbreak

Growing friction with China and how to reopen borders after the pandemic will likely be among the topics discussed by the leaders of Australia and New Zealand in their first face-to-face meeting since the coronavirus outbreak prompted both countries to close their borders.
Australian Prime Minister Scott Morrison arrived in the tourist resort of Queenstown for an overnight visit.
Morrison is the first major world leader to visit New Zealand since both countries shut their borders last year to contain the virus.
The neighbours opened a quarantine-free travel bubble last month, although a recent outbreak of the virus in Melbourne has prompted New Zealand to suspend the arrangement with Victoria State.

Opposition Nears Deal to Oust Bibi

The head of a small hard-line party said he would try to form a unity government with Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu's opponents, taking a major step towards ending the 12-year rule of the Israeli leader.
Following the development, Netanyahu, as known as "Bibi" across Israel, said that a coalition government without him was a "danger" for Israel's security.
Yamina Party leader Naftali Bennett said that he has decided to join forces with the country's opposition leader, Yair Lapid. The pair has until Wednesday to complete a deal in which they are expected to each serve two years as prime minister in a rotation deal.

Israel and Egypt Hold High Level Talks on Truce with Hamas, Rebuilding Gaza Strip

Egypt and Israel held high-level talks in both countries Sunday to shore up a fragile truce between Israel and the Hamas militant group and rebuild the Gaza Strip after a punishing 11-day war that left parts of the seaside enclave in ruins.
Egyptian Foreign Minister Sameh Shukry received his Israeli counterpart, Gabi Ashkenazi, in Cairo. The meeting is part of an effort to build on an Israel-Hamas cease-fire reached May 21 and to revive Israeli-Palestinian negotiations, which have been dormant for more than a decade, Shukry's office said. Egypt has not said how it would be able to restart talks.
The hours-long visit was the first public one by an Israeli Foreign Minister to Egypt since 2008.
They also discussed the release of Israeli soldiers and citizens being held by Hamas.

China Lifts Cap on Births per Family

China said that married couples may have up to three children, a major policy shift from the existing limit of two after recent data showed a dramatic decline in births in the world`s most populous country.
Beijing scrapped its decades-old one-child policy in 2016, replacing it with a two-child limit that failed to result in a sustained surge in births given the high cost of raising children in Chinese cities - a challenge that remains.
To further optimise the birth policy, China will implement a one-married-couple-can-have-three-children policy.
The policy change will come with "supportive measures, which will be conducive to improving our country`s population structure, fulfilling the country`s strategy of actively coping with an ageing population and maintaining the advantage, endowment of human resources", Xinhua said.

May 30, 2021

US Senate Confirms Christine Wormuth as First Female Army Secretary

Christine Wormuth was confirmed unanimously by the Senate to be the first female secretary of the Army. Wormuth, who led President Joe Biden's transition team at the Pentagon, got an overwhelmingly warm reception from members of the Senate Armed Services Committee during a hearing this month. Her confirmation sets her up as one of the more powerful officials in a defence establishment long dominated by men. She is the second woman named to a top Pentagon role by Biden. The deputy secretary of defence is Kathleen Hicks.

UK PM Boris Johnson Marries Fiancée

British Prime Minister Boris Johnson and his fiancée Carrie Symonds married in a small private ceremony in London, his Downing Street office.
Johnson, 56, and 33-year-old Symonds, an environmental advocate, announced their engagement in February 2020.
The marriage is Symonds' first and Johnson's third. He has at least five other children from previous relationships.

Biden's USD 6 Trillion Budget

President Joe Biden unveiled a USD 6 trillion budget for next year that's piled high with new safety net programs for the poor and middle class, but his generosity depends on taxing corporations and the wealthy to keep the nation's spiking debt from spiralling totally out of control.
This year's projected deficit would set a new record of USD 3.7 trillion that would drop to USD 1.8 trillion next year — still almost double pre-pandemic levels. The national debt will soon breach USD 30 trillion after more than USD 5 trillion in already approved Covid-19 relief. As a result, the government must borrow roughly 50 cents of every dollar it spends this year and next.

May 29, 2021

Mali Names Coup Leader Col Assimi Goïta as Transitional President

Mali's constitutional court has named the leader of the country's military coup, Colonel Assimi Goïta, as its transitional President.
Col Goïta had already declared himself interim President, two days after seizing power in Mali's second coup in nine months.
He also led the first coup last August, which saw the elected President Ibrahim Boubacar Keïta forced out of office.
The court said that the decision was due to the "vacancy in the presidency".
The two men tasked with steering the country back to civilian rule, interim President Bah Ndaw and Prime Minister Moctar Ouane, were detained by soldiers.
Col Goïta said that both men had failed in their duties and were seeking to sabotage the country's transition.

Talks on to Bring Limpiyadhura-Lipulekh-Kalapani Area Back from India's Control

Nepal Prime Minister KP Sharma Oli said that his government is engaged in dialogue with India to bring back the disputed tri-junction of Limpiyadhura, Lipulekh and Kalapani area from India's control.
The areas lying on the east of Mahakali is of Nepal and we have issued our land in the political and administrative map and passed it (through parliament).
The conditions are 'unfavorable' in the disputed tri-junction of Limpiyadhura, Lipulekh and Kalapani and therefore elections announced in November will not be held in these regions.

Bashar al-Assad Wins a Fourth Term

Syrian President Bashar Assad was re-elected in a landslide, ushering in a fourth seven-year term in the war-torn country following an election described as illegitimate and a sham by the West and his opposition.
Assad's win was not in doubt, in an election where officials said 18 million were eligible to vote. But in the country ravaged by the 10-year-old conflict, areas controlled by rebels or Kurdish-led troops did not hold the vote.
At least 8 million, mostly displaced, live in those areas in northwest and northeast Syria. Over 5 million refugees mostly living in neighbouring countries have largely refrained from casting their ballots.
US and European officials have also questioned the legitimacy of the election, saying it violates UN resolutions in place to resolve the conflict, lacks any international monitoring, and is unrepresentative of all Syrians.

Permanent Commission for Israel and Palestine

Organisation of Islamic Cooperation (OIC) have called United Nations Human Rights Council (UNHRC) to establish a permanent commission; who can report on human rights violations across Israel, Gaza and West Bank; following the latest violence in Israel-Palestine Conflict.
The proposed Permanent Commission is an independent, international commission of inquiry. It will be appointed by president of UNHRC. Commission will investigate violations of humanitarian and human rights law in Israel and Palestine. Commission will authorize "commission of inquiry (COI)" which is the highest level of scrutiny. Proposed commission can also investigate all underlying causes of tensions and instability in the region often.
OCI, comprising of 57 states, is second-largest intergovernmental organisation after United Nations. It acts as "collective voice of Muslim countries". It is involved in protection of interests of Muslims in order to promote international peace and harmony across world. It was established in 1969 following a summit in Rabat, Kingdom of Morocco. It is headquartered in Jeddah, Saudi Arabia.

Nepal's Constitutional Bench to Hear Petitions against House Dissolution

Nepal's Chief Justice Cholendra Shumsher Rana has picked four justices of the Supreme Court (SC) for the Constitutional Bench to hear the 30 writ petitions filed against the dissolution of the House of Representatives by the President.
There is a provision of a five-member Constitutional Bench to settle the disputes over constitutional matters.
As many as 30 writ petitions have been registered at the apex court against President Bidya Devi Bhandari's May 22 move to dissolve the lower house of Parliament on the advice of Prime Minister K P Sharma Oli, who is heading a minority government.
The newly-formed bench includes justices Dipak Kumar Karki, Aanand Mohan Bhattarai, Tej Bahadur KC and Bam Kumar Shrestha, besides the Chief Justice.

May 28, 2021

Ecuador's Lasso Sworn in as First Right-wing Leader in 14 Years

Guillermo Lasso, a conservative, assumed the presidency of Ecuador and has become the first right-wing leader in 14 years in Ecuador. The 65-year-old former banker beat left-wing economist Andres Arauz in a second-round run-off last month and succeeds the hugely unpopular Lenin Moreno.
Guillermo Alberto is a banker, businessman, writer and politician who recently became the 47th president of Ecuador. He is the first centre-right president in two decades.

Hong Kong Electoral Reform: LegCo Passes 'Patriots' Law

Hong Kong has passed a controversial electoral reform law, aimed at keeping people China deems "unpatriotic" from positions of political power.
The reform will allow a pro-China panel to vet and elect candidates, reducing democratic representation.
Critics warn it is designed to remove all opposition from the city's parliament, allowing Beijing to tighten its control over Hong Kong.
It is the latest measure designed to crack down on dissent in Hong Kong.
Since the electoral reform law was initiated by the Chinese government in March, it has drawn widespread international condemnation, including from the US, the EU and UK.
On Thursday the bill was passed by an overwhelming majority in Hong Kong's parliament, the Legislative Council (LegCo), which has been dominated by pro-Beijing lawmakers since a mass opposition walkout last year.
The bill will be signed into law soon by city executive Carrie Lam.

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