General Awareness

INTERNATIONAL AFFAIRS - August 2018

Aug 2018

Oct 17, 2020

Boris Johnson Says Time to Get Ready for 'No Deal' Brexit

British Prime Minister Boris Johnson issued a stark warning that the UK must now prepare for the prospect of no post-Brexit free trade agreement (FTA) with the European Union (EU).
In a statement from Downing Street, Johnson said that he was making a judgement call on the UK-EU trade negotiations as the January 1, 2021, deadline for the end of the ongoing Brexit transition period was now only 10 weeks away and the crucial European Council summit this week failed to come up with promising answers.
The UK had voted to leave the 27-member European economic trading bloc in a referendum in June 2016 and formally left in January this year, entering into a transition period with unchanged rules until the end of this year.

Chinese Envoy Warns Canada against Granting Asylum to Pro-democracy Protestors from Hong Kong

The Chinese ambassador to Canada warned the Trudeau government not to grant asylum to Hong Kong residents fleeing a widely criticised national security law imposed by Beijing.
Ambassador Cong Peiwu branded pro-democracy protesters in Hong Kong as violent criminals and said if Canada grants them asylum that amounts to interference in China's internal affairs.
Protests against the Hong Kong and mainland Chinese governments swelled last year, and Beijing clamped down on expressions of anti-government sentiment in the city with a new national security law that took effect in June.
The law outlaws subversive, secessionist, and terrorist activity, as well as collusion with foreign powers to interfere in the city's internal affairs. The US, Britain and Canada accuse China of infringing on the city's freedoms.

India to Expand Economic Partnership with Chile as Part of Indo-Pacific Vision

India and Latin American financial main Chile deliberated upon increasing their Preferential Commerce Settlement and creating Joint Enterprise Council to advertise multi-faceted enterprise and commerce hyperlinks as Delhi hopes to broaden its Indo-Pacific assemble.
These selections had been arrived on the first Joint Fee Assembly (JCM) between India and Chile held on a digital platform. It was co-chaired by S. Jaishankar, Overseas Minister and his Chilean counterpart Andres Allamand Zavala. Chile had determined to open its Consulate Normal in Mumbai to advertise commerce hyperlinks.
The JCM with Chile was a big growth, being the primary institutionalized dialogue between the 2 nations on the degree of Overseas Ministers. Chile is a member of Pacific Alliance comprising Chile; Peru; Colombia and Mexico. The Pacific Alliance seeks nearer ties with India and the Alliance might be an anchor for India in a single geographical a part of the Indo-Pacific area.

Putin Proposes Year Long Extension of Nuclear Pact with US

Russian President Vladimir Putin made a strong call to save the last existing nuclear arms control pact between Russia and the United States, proposing to extend it at least for one year.
Putin's statement comes amid conflicting signals from Russian and U.S. diplomats about the fate of the New START treaty that is set to expire in February 2021 unless Moscow and Washington agree on its extension.
All those years, the New START has worked, playing its fundamental role of limiting and containing an arms race.
The New START treaty was signed in 2010 by U.S. President Barack Obama and Russian President Dmitry Medvedev.
The pact limits each country to no more than 1,550 deployed nuclear warheads and 700 deployed missiles and bombers, and envisages sweeping on-site inspections to verify compliance.

Japan Will not Join U.S. Plan to Bar China from Telecom Networks

Japan has told the United States that Tokyo will not, at the moment, join Washington's plan to exclude Chinese firms from tele-communications networks.
Japan will take its own steps to respond in case there are worries over security issue, while Tokyo will cooperate with the United States.
The U.S. State Department published in August an update of a plan called the "Clean Network" calling for telecom companies, cloud service providers, and mobile apps of Chinese origin to be kept out of the United States.
The United States is pressing allies to bar Huawei from next generation 5G mobile phone networks on security grounds.

Oct 16, 2020

Oli Keeps Defence Ministry with Himself in Cabinet Reshuffle

Nepal's Prime Minister KP Sharma Oli reshuffled his Cabinet, keeping the key defence portfolio with himself, in a bid to strengthen his grip within the fractious ruling party and to allow smooth functioning of his government.
Oli inducted three new ministers, including Finance Minister Bishnu Poudel, and changed the portfolio of Deputy Prime Minister and Defence Minister Ishwor Pokharel.
However, the dissident faction of the ruling Communist Party of Nepal led by executive chairman Pushpa Kamal Dahal 'Prachanda' was not satisfied with Oli's latest move, which they considered as one-sided.

France Appoints Envoy Christophe Penot for Indo-Pacific

In a first, France appointed an envoy for the Indo Pacific, a move that shows how Paris is giving priority to the new concept. Senior diplomat Christophe Penot is the country's envoy to Indo Pacific and he begins his assignment immediately.
Penot's last posting was Canberra as France's envoy to Australia. He has been France's envoy to Malaysia and served in Tokyo, Ottawa, London, Hanoi. Fluent in Chinese and Japanese, Penot was honoured with Chevalier de la Légion d'Honneur in 2012 for service to his country.
Directly appointed by French President Emmanuel Macron, in his new capacity the envoy will pay "special attention" to cooperation with India to implement the joint vision on the Indo-pacific. The vision was adopted during the 2018 visit by French President Macron to India.

Oct 15, 2020

US Supreme Court Halts Census in Latest Twist of 2020 Count

The Supreme Court ruled that the Trump administration can end census field operations early, in a blow to efforts to make sure minorities are properly counted in the crucial once-a-decade tally.
The decision was not a total loss for plaintiffs in a lawsuit challenging the administration's decision to end the count early. They managed to get nearly two extra weeks of counting people as the case made its way through the courts.
However, the ruling increased the chances of the Trump administration retaining control of the process that decides how many congressional seats each state gets — and by extension how much voting power each state has.

Germany Agrees to aid Holocaust Survivors

The organisation that negotiates compensation with the German government said that Germany has agreed to provide more than a half billion euros to aid Holocaust survivors struggling under the burdens of the coronavirus pandemic.
The payments will be going to approximately 240,000 survivors around the world, primarily in Israel, North America, the former Soviet Union and Western Europe, over the next two years.
With the end of World War II now 75 years in the past, Holocaust survivors are all elderly, and because many were deprived of proper nutrition when they were young today they suffer from numerous medical issues.
In addition, many live isolated lives having lost their entire families and also have psychological issues because of their persecution under the Nazis.

Ukraine 17th country to Have Air Bubble Arrangement with India

India has established a separate bilateral air bubble arrangement with Ukraine for operation of special international passenger flights between the two countries.
Till now, India had formed such arrangements with 16 countries—Afghanistan, Bahrain, Oman, Canada, France, Germany, Iraq, Japan, the Maldives, Nigeria, Qatar, the UAE, Kenya, Bhutan, the UK and the USA.
Under an air bubble pact between the two countries, special international passenger flights can be operated by their airlines into each other's territories under restrictive conditions due to the COVID-19 pandemic.

Oct 14, 2020

Pakistan to Remain in Grey List

The Financial Action Task Force announced that Pakistan will continue to remain under "grey list" of the organisation.
The Asia-pacific group of FATF submitted a report titled "Follow up report on mutual evaluation of Pakistan". The report is first of its kind. The decision of putting Pakistan under grey list was taken based on this report.
As per the report, the progress of Pakistan on recommendations on the effectiveness of combating Financing terror system and anti-money laundering made by the Financial Action Task Force largely remained unchanged as compared to that of 2019.
Pakistan after being degraded under the FATF list in 2019, Pakistan passed three crucial legislation. They were:
Anti-terrorism Act (Amendment) Bill 2020
Anti-money laundering (Amendment) Bill
Islamabad capital territory Waqf properties Bill

Seoul Seeks Closer Defence Ties with India

South Korea has suggested the revival of in-person diplomacy, including two-plus-two talks with India, during a meeting of its first Vice Foreign Minister Choi Jong-kun with Indian ambassador in Seoul Sripriya Ranganathan.
Seoul's proposal for a two plus two with India or a simultaneous meeting of foreign and defence ministers from both countries has been aired at a time when the US is keen on an informal expansion of Quad. The countries that could be a part of an extended Quad include South Korea.
Ranganathan and Choi also agreed to continue efforts to deepen bilateral cooperation, especially in defence and people-to-people exchanges.

Indian and Taiwanese Think Tanks Join Hands

The Taiwan-Asia Exchange Foundation (TAEF), a leading think tank from Taiwan signed a memorandum with India's National Maritime Foundation (NMF) in order to foster cooperation in the Indo-Pacific region as part of Taiwan's South bound policy.
The two groups will set up a joint task force to deepen bilateral dialogue. The memorandum's aim is to conduct joint research and expand cooperation.
The TAEF, the organizer of the fourth edition of the Yushan Forum, will wait until coronavirus (COVID-19) travel restrictions are over before sending a delegation to India to hold direct talks.

China and Russia Win Seats on UN Human Rights Council

China, Russia and Cuba won seats on the U.N.'s premiere human rights body despite opposition from activist groups over their abysmal human rights records, but another target, Saudi Arabia, lost.
Russia and Cuba were running unopposed, but China and Saudi Arabia were in a five-way race in the only contested race for seats on the Human Rights Council.
In secret-ballot voting in the 193-member U.N. General Assembly on that race, Pakistan received 169 votes, Uzbekistan 164, Nepal 150, China 139 and Saudi Arabia just 90 votes.

European Union to Impose Sanction on Russia and Belarus

The European Union agreed to impose sanctions on Russia for poisoning the opposition leader Alexei Navalny. Imposition of sanction was initiated by France and Germany.
Navalny was an anti-corruption investigator. He was the major political opponent of Vladimir Putin the Russian President. He fell ill on August 20, 2020 during a domestic flight. He was then flown to Germany for treatment and he is still recovering there.
The tests conducted by the Organisation for the Prohibition of Chemical Weapons confirmed that he has become a victim of the novichok nerve agent.
In 2017 The Organisation for Prohibition of Chemical Weapons a confirmed destruction of 39967 metric tons of chemical weapons possessed by Russia.

Oct 13, 2020

Protesters Knock Down Roosevelt and Lincoln Statues

Protesters overturned statues of former Presidents Theodore Roosevelt and Abraham Lincoln in Portland, Oregon, in a declaration of "rage" towards Columbus Day.
Protest organisers dubbed the event "Indigenous Peoples Day of Rage," in response to the federal holiday named after 15th-century Italian explorer Christopher Columbus, a polarising figure who Native American advocates have said spurred centuries of genocide against Indigenous populations in the Americas.
After toppling the statues, the crowd began smashing windows at the Oregon Historical Society and later moved onto the Portland State University Campus Public Safety office.

Bangladesh Cabinet Approves Death Penalty for Rape Cases

Bangladesh's Cabinet approved an amendment to introduce the death penalty for rape cases after a series of recent sexual assaults sparked nationwide protests.
Bangladesh was rocked by an unprecedented level of protest after footage of a brutal gang assault on a woman went viral on social media.
As per Cabinet secretary Khandaker Anwarul Islam, the Cabinet unanimously endorsed the amended law, prescribing capital punishment for rape instead of (existing) lifetime rigorous imprisonment.
During the Cabinet meeting, Prime Minister Sheikh Hasina emphasised on completing rape trials within the stipulated time frame as well.

Israeli Government Approves Normalisation Deal with UAE

The Israeli government unanimously approved the country's recently signed normalisation agreement with the United Arab Emirates ahead of a ratification vote by parliament.
Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu said in a statement following his weekly Cabinet meeting that he spoke over the weekend with Abu Dhabi Crown Prince Mohammed bin Zayed Al Nahyan.
Sheikh Mohammed, the UAE's day-to-day ruler, confirmation of the call and said that discussed prospects for peace and the need for stability, cooperation and development in the region.

United Nations Stillbirth Report

The United Nations launched a report on stillbirths titled "A Neglected Tragedy: The Global Burden of Stillbirths". The report was created by UNICEF, World Health Organisation, World Bank and the United Nations department of economic and social affairs.
As per the report, a stillborn baby is delivered every 16 seconds. 84 percentage of these grievous episodes occur in low and lower-middle-income countries.
This is the first time a stillbirth report has been published by the United Nations.
The covid-19 impact has induced 50% reduction in health services. This has created 200,000 additional still birth in 17 low and middle-income countries.
According to the report, there were around 1.9 million stillbirths globally. Of this 0.34 million were from India. India along with other countries such as Nigeria, Congo, Pakistan, China and Ethiopia contributed to half of all the stillbirth in the world.

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