General Awareness

INTERNATIONAL AFFAIRS - May 2019

May 2019

Dec 21, 2019

Parliament Passes Johnson's Brexit Bill

The United Kingdom is set to leave the European Union on January 31, as promised by Prime Minister Boris Johnson after the House of Commons passed the Withdrawal Agreement Bill.
Johnson sought to unite the house that was bitterly divided since the 2016 EU referendum, which made it impossible for former Prime Minister Theresa May to get the agreement bill passed on three occasions.
Lawmakers voted by 358 to 234 to pass the second reading of the legislation.While Johnson had the support of his 365 Conservative lawmakers in the 650-seat Lower House.

Mahathir Mohamad Criticises CAA

Malaysian Prime Minister Mahathir Mohamad criticised India's Citizenship (Amendment) Act and said that people are dying because of this law, prompting New Delhi to dismiss his remarks as factually inaccurate.
Talking to reporters on the margins of the Kuala Lumpur Summit, Mahathir questioned the necessity of the CAA when people of different faiths have lived together for 70 years in India.

Trump Seeks Immediate Trial in Senate after Impeachment

Donald Trump has demanded "an immediate trial" from Democrats after the timing of the Senate hearing was cast into doubt just a day after the House impeached a president for only the third time in history.
Nancy Pelosi, the Democratic House speaker, refused to reveal when she would send the articles of impeachment to the Senate, which is required for a trial.
The move was seen as an attempt to pressure Republicans into accepting Democratic demands that White House officials, who had refused to testify before the impeachment inquiry, be called as witnesses at trial.

IMF Approves Second Tranche of Loan

The International Monetary Fund (IMF) approved second tranche worth of $450 million for Pakistan under the $6 billion Extended Fund Facility in a meeting of its executive board in Washington.
The IMF in its board meeting said that Pakistan's economic reform program is on track while decisive policy implementation by the Pakistani authorities is helping to preserve economic stability in the country. The IMF said that the authorities remain committed to expanding social safety nets, reducing poverty, and narrowing the gender gap.
In November, adviser to PM on finance, revenue and economic affairs Abdul H. Shaikh had said that IMF, after holding successful dialogues, showed agreement to release the second tranche amounting to $450 million loan.

Dec 20, 2019

Sri Lanka to Develop Mattala Airport

As per President Gotabaya Rajapaksa, Sri Lanka's civil aviation authority will develop the southern airport in Mattala, near the strategically located Hambantota Port, ruling out earlier proposals of a joint venture with India. However, he invited Indian companies, especially in the IT sector, to invest in Sri Lanka.

Impeachment Case against Trump Fabricated

The US Democrats impeached President Donald Trump for fabricated reasons in order to reverse his 2016 election victory.
Putin expected Trump to survive the proceedings and stay in office.

Trump Impeached for Abuse of Power and Obstruction of Congress

The House of Representatives impeached President Trump for abuse of power and obstruction of Congress, making him the third President in history to be charged with committing high crimes and misdemeanors and face removal by the Senate.
On a day of constitutional consequence and raging partisan tension, the votes on the two articles of impeachment fell largely along party lines.
Only two Democrats opposed the article on abuse of power, which accused Mr. Trump of corruptly using the levers of government to solicit election assistance from Ukraine in the form of investigations to discredit his Democratic political rivals. Republicans were united in opposition. It passed 230 to 197, with Speaker Nancy Pelosi gaveling the vote to a close from the House rostrum.
On the second charge, obstruction of Congress, a third Democrat joined Republicans in opposition. The vote was 229 to 198.
The impeachment votes set the stage for a historic trial beginning early next year in the Senate, which will have final say — 10 months before Mr. Trump faces re-election — on whether to acquit the 45th president or convict and remove him from office.

Pakistan Set to Pay India Costs in Hyderabad Nizam Case

The High Court of England and Wales ordered Pakistan to pay India and the two princes' party to the long-drawn dispute 65% of their legal costs. In October, the court had ruled in favour of India and the two descendants of the late 7th Nizam of Hyderabad, who sent £1 million to a London bank in 1948, now estimated to value at least £35 million. The court ordered that Prince Muffakham Jah be paid £1,835,445.83, the government of India £2,802,192.22 and Mukarram Jah, the VIIIth Nizam £795,064.63 (65% on account of their costs).

Dec 19, 2019

Bangladesh Calls Off JRC Meeting

Bangladesh called off a meeting of the bilateral Joint Rivers Commission (JRC) a week after two top Bangladeshi ministers cancelled their visits to India following the passage of the Citizenship (Amendment) Act.
The two-day meeting of the JRC was scheduled to be held in New Delhi and the talks were postponed at the request of the Bangladesh.
A new date will be fixed after discussing with India.

US Rejects Relief for North Korea

The US moved to head off a call by China and Russia to ease sanctions on North Korea despite threats of further provocations, with President Donald Trump saying that he would take care of" any threats the regime had in the works.
According to a draft, a new UN Security Council proposal by China and Russia to lessen the economic embargo on North Korea is getting pushback in Washington. The proposal by North Korea's historic allies said that the changes were warranted because Kim Jong Un's regime had complied with United Nations resolutions and needed humanitarian and livelihood relief.

Japan Widens Lead on China as Top Foreign Treasuries Holder

Japan widened its lead over China as the largest foreign owner of US Treasuries as its holdings rebounded to the second-highest level since 2015, while China's stake was little changed.
Japan's holdings of US notes, bills and bonds increased to $1.17 trillion in October from $1.15 trillion a month earlier. Japan overtook China as the largest non-US holder of Treasuries in June -- the first time it held that position since May 2017. China was the second-largest foreign creditor in October, with $1.10 trillion in holdings. That is the smallest amount since April 2017.

German Cabinet Approves Ban on Gay Conversion Therapy

The German government signed off on a new law banning conversion therapies designed to force heterosexuality on homosexuals.
The legislation, set to be introduced in 2020, would see the practice made punishable with up to a year in prison and fines of up to 30,000 euros ($33,000).
Once it is approved, Germany -- where there are an estimated 1,000 attempts a year to "re-educate" gay people -- would be only the second European country with such a ban after Malta passed similar legislation in 2016.

Dec 18, 2019

Musharraf Sentenced to Death

A Pakistani court sentenced former military ruler Pervez Musharraf to death on charges of high treason and subverting the Constitution in a case related to the emergency he imposed in 2007.
This is the first time in Pakistan's history that a former Army Chief has been sentenced to death. The powerful army, usually considered immune from prosecution, expressed its opposition to the verdict and said that Musharraf can never be a traitor. The Imran Khan government would review the special court's decision.
The former President, who was born in Old Delhi, has been living in Dubai and is said to be very ill and unlikely to travel home to face the sentence. Pakistan and the UAE have no extradition treaty and Dubai authorities are unlikely to arrest him.

Boris Seeks to Rule out Brexit Delay

The Brexit debate resumed with the Boris Johnson government announcing that the Withdrawal Agreement Bill to be placed before parliament will block any delay beyond December 2020.
The UK is due to leave the EU on January 31, 2020 but will move into a "transition" phase, when nothing will change in practice, with the UK remaining in the EU single market and the customs union until December 31, 2020.
London and Brussels are expected to finalise a trade agreement during the transition period for arrangements in place from January 1, 2021.
The transition period can be extended by mutual agreement for up to two years. But PM Johnson is ruling out the extension, which also makes it possible for the UK to leave without a deal.

China Drops Plea for Discussion on Kashmir at UN

As per reports, France and other permanent members of the UN Security Council thwarted an effort by China, acting on behalf of Pakistan, to discuss the situation in Kashmir.
China pushed for a meeting of the UN Security Council behind closed doors — the second such effort since an earlier meet on the Kashmir issue in August. At that time, China's attempt to have an open and formal meeting of the Security Council was rebuffed by members of the body, which agreed to hold only closed consultations.
France and other permanent members of the Security Council conveyed to China the body was not the best forum to discuss the Kashmir issue, which ought to be handled bilaterally by India and Pakistan. Non-permanent members of the council, such as Germany and Poland, too, showed no inclination for a discussion on Kashmir.
The Chinese side subsequently withdrew its note seeking the meeting on Kashmir.

Dec 17, 2019

Johnson Set to Welcome Lawmakers, Get Brexit Rolling

British Prime Minister Boris Johnson is ready to give a pep talk on Monday to a new group of Conservative Party lawmakers as he begins his push to secure parliamentary approval for his Brexit deal.
Mr. Johnson will welcome 109 newly elected colleagues, many of them coming from parts of the country that were once strongholds of the opposition Labour Party.

Qatar Hopeful of Ending Rift with Saudi Arabia

Qatar's Foreign Minister voiced optimism over ending a bitter rift with Saudi Arabia, and said that early talks had broken a stalemate but Doha was unwilling to alter ties with Turkey as a pre-condition.
Saudi Arabia along with its allies the United Arab Emirates, Bahrain and Egypt cut all diplomatic and transport ties with Qatar in June 2017.
The four nations accused Doha of backing radical Islamists, including the Muslim Brotherhood, and seeking closer ties with Saudi arch rival Tehran -- allegations Qatar vehemently denies.

Pension Reform Chief of France Resigns

The French official leading a controversial pensions overhaul stepped down over a scandal involving undeclared payments, as a crippling transport strike against the proposals entered its 12th day, imperilling the holiday plans of thousands.
Jean-Paul Delevoye became the target of unions after admitting that he had failed to disclose 13 private sector posts, both paid and unpaid, in a recent asset declaration. One of his jobs, as president of the Parallaxe education think-tank, paid nearly 5,400 euros (USD 6,000) a month on top of his ministerial salary - money he should have forfeited under a 2013 political transparency law.

Turkey Deploys Surveillance Drone in Northern Cyprus

Turkey dispatched a surveillance and reconnaissance drone to the breakaway north of ethnically divided island nation of Cyprus amid tensions over offshore oil and gas exploration.
The Turkish-made Bayraktar TB2 drone took off from an airbase in Dalaman, Turkey, and touched down at the airport in Gecitkala — known as Lefkoniko in Greek, on Cyprus.
The Turkish deployment would be limited to unarmed drones as there was "no need" for armed ones.

Democrats Accuse Trump of Federal Crimes

Democrats have accused President Donald Trump of multiple federal crimes including criminal bribery and wire fraud in a report that explains the two articles, or charges, of impeachment that the House of Representatives is expected to approve.
The US Senate will hold a trial in January 2020. Indian American lawmakers Pramila Jayapal and Raja Krishnamoorthi could be among impeachment managers appointed by House Democrats to argue their case.

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