General Awareness

INTERNATIONAL AFFAIRS - May 2019

May 2019

May 26, 2021

Mali's Coup Leader Dismisses President and Prime Minister

Mali's former coup leader Assimi Goita fired the President and Prime Minister of the transitional government but promised to still hold new elections next year.
The move came a day after the two leaders were arrested by the military following their announcement of a cabinet reshuffle. Goita said that the President and Prime Minister had acted without consulting him.

Iran and World Powers Resume Talks on US Return to Nuclear Deal

World powers were set to open a fifth round of talks with Iran aimed at bringing the United States back into the landmark 2015 nuclear deal meant to prevent the Islamic Republic from obtaining an atomic bomb.
The talks in Vienna come the day after the UN's nuclear watchdog, the International Atomic Energy Agency, was able to strike a last-minute agreement with Tehran on a one-month extension to a deal on surveillance cameras at Iran's nuclear sites.
The issue wasn't directly related to the ongoing talks on the nuclear deal, known as the Joint Comprehensive Plan of Action, or JCPOA, but had Iran not agreed it could have seriously complicated the discussions.
The US is not directly involved in the talks but an American delegation headed by President Joe Biden's special envoy for Iran, Rob Malley, has also been in the Austrian capital. Representatives from the other powers involved Germany, France, Britain, Russia and China have been shuttling between the U.S. and the Iranians to facilitate indirect talks.

Joe Biden to Meet Putin on June 16

The White House announced that US President Joe Biden will meet his Russian counterpart Vladimir Putin in Geneva, Switzerland on June 16.
The leaders will discuss the full range of pressing issues, as we seek to restore predictability and stability to the US-Russia relationship.
Last month, Biden held a phone call with Putin, where he had voiced his concerns over the sudden Russian military build-up in occupied Crimea and on Ukraine's borders, and called on Russia to de-escalate tensions.
He had reaffirmed his goal of building a stable and predictable relationship with Russia consistent with US interests and proposed a summit meeting in a third country in the coming months to discuss the full range of issues between the United States and Russia.

May 25, 2021

Australia to Close Embassy in Afghanistan

Australia abruptly announced that it will shutter its embassy in Afghanistan this week, expressing fears over the increasingly uncertain security environment in Kabul as foreign troops withdraw.
The Taliban, which has ramped up violence across the country in recent weeks, reacted by saying it would provide a safe environment to foreign diplomats and humanitarian organisations.
The United States and allied forces are in the final stages of pulling out their remaining troops from Afghanistan, ending America's longest-ever war, but heralding an uncertain future for a nation in the tightening grip of Taliban militants.
According to Australian Prime Minister Scott Morrison, the embassy would close in just three days.

Cindy Kiro New Zealand's Next Governor-general

Children's advocate Cindy Kiro hopes to inspire Maori girls after becoming the first indigenous woman appointed to the role of governor-general.
Prime Minister Jacinda Ardern picked Kiro for the largely ceremonial role as Queen Elizabeth II's representative, and that the queen had approved.
Under New Zealand's constitutional system, the British monarch remains the nation's head of state although it does not wield any real day-to-day power.
Kiro's five-year term begins in October, when she will replace Patsy Reddy. Both women have been given the honorific "Dame" for their services to the community.
Kiro is currently chief executive of the Royal Society, a nonprofit group which advocates for research.

Appoint Deuba as PM of Nepal

Nepal's Opposition alliance filed a writ petition in the Supreme Court demanding restoration of the House of Representatives and appointment of veteran Nepali Congress leader Sher Bahadur Deuba as the Prime Minister.
Leaders of the alliance moved the apex court two days after President Bidya Devi Bhandari dissolved the 275-member House on the recommendations of Prime Minister KP Sharma Oli, who headed a minority government after losing a trust vote in the House.
In the writ, the petitioners have demanded that Nepali Congress president Deuba should be lawfully appointed the Prime Minister of Nepal in accordance with Article 76 (5).
Their other demands include the scrapping of the announcement of elections in November, to stop election-related programmes amid the pandemic, and to issue an order to summon House meeting to facilitate presentation of the budget within the time provisioned by the Constitution.

May 24, 2021

IAEA will Have No Access to Iran's Nuclear Sites

As per Iran's parliament speaker, a three-month monitoring deal between Tehran and the U.N. nuclear watchdog has expired, and the agency would no longer access images of nuclear sites.
The head of the International Atomic Energy Agency (IAEA), Rafael Grossi, is to hold a news conference with Tehran.
He is in talks with Iran on extending the monitoring arrangement, which could affect talks between Tehran and six powers to revive the 2015 nuclear deal.
Iran began gradually breaching terms of the pact with world powers after then-President Donald Trump withdrew the United States from the deal in 2018 and re-imposed sanctions.

May 23, 2021

Myanmar Election Chief May Dissolve Aung San Suu Kyi's Party

The head of Myanmar's military-appointed state election commission said Friday that his agency will consider dissolving Aung San Suu Kyi's former ruling party for alleged involvement in electoral fraud and having its leaders charged with treason.
Suu Kyi's National League for Democracy came to power after a landslide 2015 election victory, and won an even greater majority in last November's general election. It was set to start a second term in February when the military seized power in a coup, arresting her and dozens of top government officials and party members.
Junta leader Senior Gen. Min Aung Hlaing cited electoral fraud as the reason for the army's takeover, saying there was terrible fraud in the voter lists. The army-backed Union Solidarity and Development Party, which suffered unexpectedly heavy losses in the election, made similar allegations.
Independent observers dispute the assertions of widespread irregularities.
Political parties were called to discuss planned changes in the electoral system at a meeting. The Union Election Commission chairman Thein Soe said that an investigation of last year's election that would soon be completed showed that Suu Kyi's party had illegally worked with the government to give itself an advantage at the polls.

Biden Appoints Special Envoy for N. Korea

US President Joe Biden has announced the appointment of a special envoy for North Korea after he had his maiden talks with his South Korean counterpart Moon Jae-In.
I'm pleased to announce that Ambassador Sung Kim, a career diplomat and with deep policy expertise, will serve as the US Special Envoy for the DPRK (Democratic People's Republic of Korea), Biden told reporters on Thursday at a joint press briefing along with the visiting South Korean President Moon Jae-in.
DPRK is popularly called North Korea.

Nepal President Dissolves House

In a dramatic turn of events, Nepal President Bidya Devi Bhandari on Friday midnight dissolved the Parliament as per the recommendation of the government and declared to hold midterm elections on November 12 and 19.
As per the constitutional provision, the President has authenticated the recommendation made by the Cabinet to dissolve the House and declare the snap polls for November 12 and 19.
This is for the second time that the House has been dissolved. Earlier, President Bhandari had dissolved the House on December 20 last year but later it was reinstated on February 23. The decision to dissolve the house came hours after a new government formation bid failed.

May 22, 2021

Joe Biden Signs Bill to Address Hate Crimes against Asian-Americans

US President Joe Biden has signed a legislation to address the sudden increase in hate crime against Asian-Americans in the aftermath of the COVID-19 pandemic and expressed hope that such crimes would now be more accurately counted and reported so that it can be ended.
It will provide resources to create specialised hate crimes units that will also help states create hotlines for hate crimes at state and local levels that will be accessible for people with limited English proficiency. And it provides resources for training for state and local law enforcement to identify, investigate, and report these heinous crimes, Biden said after signing the legislation which has become a law after his assent.
Earlier this week, the House of Representatives passed the Senate-approved version of the COVID-19 Hate Crimes Act with an overwhelming bipartisan vote.

European Parliament Votes to 'Freeze' Investment Deal with China

Members of the European Parliament voted to freeze the legislative process for ratifying the EU's investment pact with China, until Beijing lifts sanctions against EU lawmakers, in retaliation for the condemnation of human rights abuses in Xinjiang province.
The motion was passed by 599 MEPs, with 30 votes against and 58 abstentions, hurting the prospect of the major economic pact, officially known as the Comprehensive Agreement on Investment (CAI).
The European Parliament has adopted the resolution on the Chinese sanctions with 599 yes, 30 no, 58 abstentions.
According to the motion, any consideration of the EU-China Comprehensive Agreement on Investment, as well as any discussion on ratification by the European Parliament, has justifiably been frozen because the Chinese sanctions are in place.

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