General Awareness

INTERNATIONAL AFFAIRS - May 2019

May 2019

Nov 26, 2019

Romania's Pro-EU Prez Set for Re-election

Romanians started voting in the second round of presidential elections that are expected to return Klaus Iohannis to office, confirming the pro-European trajectory of the eastern EU member.
Thirty years after the fall of communism, the centre-right former physics professor is running against Social Democrats (PSD) leader and former Prime Minister Viorica Dancila, whose government fell in October, 2019 in a no-confidence vote.

Democracy Backers Sweep Hong Kong Polls

Democracy supporters were emboldened by capturing most of the seats in local elections, but Beijing and its allies are reluctant to compromise.
In the run-up to local elections in Hong Kong, Beijing and its allies in the city were portraying the vote as a way to hear the voice of a silent majority after nearly six months of increasingly violent antigovernment protests.
The city's Beijing-backed establishment camp suffered a staggering defeat in elections for district councils as democracy advocates swept 87 per cent of the seats, up from less than a third. Beijing and its supporters in Hong Kong, including the city's embattled leader, Carrie Lam, must now reckon with a resounding, very public display of support for the democracy camp and the protest movement.
According to Cary Lo, a newly elected district councilor supporting democracy, this election is not just about livelihood issues, but also a direct referendum regarding the justifiability of this regime. It has indicated that Carrie Lam's government has lost its legitimacy.

UK PM Promises Brexit Gift for Christmas

British Prime Minister Boris Johnson will promise to bring his Brexit deal back to Parliament before Christmas when he launches his Conservative Party's manifesto, the cornerstone of his pitch to voters to get Brexit done.
With less than three weeks before Britain heads to the polls on December 12, 2019 the governing Conservatives and opposition Labour are trying to tempt voters with different visions but several pledges to spend more on public services. Johnson's manifesto aims at drawing a distinction with Labour, which has promised to raise taxes on the richest and big businesses to fund a big expansion of the state, by vowing not to increase taxes if the Conservatives win the election.

New Leak Reveals How China Runs Xinjiang Camps

Leaked government documents outlining the need to prevent escape, double lock doors and constantly monitor detainees in China's network of internment camps in Xinjiang refute Beijing's defence of vocational education centres.
Obtained by the International Consortium of Investigative Journalists (ICIJ) and published by 17 media outlets worldwide, the documents show the strict protocols governing life in the camps in Xinjiang, where an estimated one million Uighurs and other mostly Muslim minorities are held.
In one document, local officials are told to monitor inmates at all times -- including during toilet breaks -- to prevent escape.
Staff are also banned from befriending inmates and engaging in personal interactions" to prevent "collusion.

Sri Lanka Won't Do Anything that Will Harm India's Interests

Days ahead of his first State visit abroad to New Delhi, Sri Lanka's newly-elected President Gotabaya Rajapaksa has said that his government will not do anything that would threaten India's security.
President Gotabaya is scheduled to visit New Delhi on November 29, 2019 following an invitation from Prime Minister Narendra Modi. External Affairs Minister S. Jaishankar was the first senior foreign official to meet the newly-elected President in Colombo, to hand over the PM's invitation.
The newly-elected Sri Lankan President's visit signals a full circle in diplomatic ties between New Delhi and the Rajapaksas in the last decade — with relations shifting from close cooperation to heightening tensions and now, to what appears a thaw.

Nov 25, 2019

PM Releases Manifesto, Keeps Focus on Brexit

The formal launch of the Conservative Party's election pledges centered around the key plank of PM Boris Johnson's campaign: making Brexit happen. Johnson claimed that his Conservatives are the sole party in next month's (December 2019) election that will actually get Brexit done.
Johnson promised to bring his Brexit deal back to parliament before Christmas, with passage likely assured if the Conservatives win a majority in the December 12 (2019) vote.
He said that would enable his government to get Britain out of the EU by the January 31 deadline while other parties would slow the process down for months or stop it altogether.
The manifesto promised increased spending to recruit 20,000 more police and 50,000 nurses. He said doctors, nurses and health professionals will be offered fast-track visas.

North Korea Conducts Artillery Firings

North Korea says leader Kim Jong Un has visited a frontline island and ordered troops there to practice firing artillery.
The firing happened when Mr. Kim inspected a military unit on Changrin Islet near the disputed sea boundary with South Korea.
It was Mr. Kim's first known visit to frontline troops since he entered nuclear talks with the United States in 2018.

Hong Kong Democrats Cheer Landslide Victory in Local Elections

Hong Kong's democrats romped to a landslide and symbolic majority in district council elections after residents turned out in record numbers to vote following six months of anti-government protests in the embattled city.
In a rare weekend lull in the unrest that has roiled the financial hub, democratic candidates across the city of 7.4 million secured more than half of the 452 district council seats for the first time, against a strongly resourced and mobilised pro-establishment Opposition.
Almost three million people voted, a record turnout of more than 71% that appeared to have been spurred by the turmoil, almost double the number last time.

Nov 24, 2019

British PM Launches Conservative Party Manifesto @Borisjohnson

British Prime Minister Boris Johnson has launched the Conservative Party manifesto for the December 12 General Election with a central pledge to "get Brexit done" and make the UK "Corbyn-neutral by Christmas".
He promised not to raise the rates of VAT, income tax and National Insurance, dubbed a "triple tax lock".
Mr Johnson said unlike any other party standing in this election they are going to get Brexit done.

Bolivia's Congress Approves New Elections Without Evo Morales

Both chambers of Bolivia's Congress have unanimously approved a bill that annuls the result of the country's presidential vote and allows for new elections to be held without former president Evo Morales.
The measure approved forbids candidates from running if they have served in the last two terms, with politicians also agreeing to appoint a new electoral board.
Interim President Jeanine Anez, an opponent of Morales, is expected to sign the bill into law.

Hong Kong's Pro-Democracy Forces Bolstered by Huge Election Win

Hong Kong residents handed an overwhelming victory to pro-democracy candidates in a vote for local district councils, a stunning repudiation of the city's Beijing-backed government after months of increasingly violent protests seeking meaningful elections.
Pro-democracy candidates won 86% seats of the 444 seats counted as of 9 a.m., official results showed, with eight seats still up for grabs. In the last election in 2015, they had won about a quarter of all seats. The pro-government camp won about 12% of seats this time around, versus 65% four years ago. The vote saw record turnout of 71%, with more than 2.94 million people casting ballots -- roughly double the number in the previous election.

Pope Francis Calls For a World Free Of Nuclear Weapons

Pope Francis has condemned the use of nuclear weapons and the growing arms trade. In a symbolic visit to the Japanese city, Nagasaki, devastated by the nuclear attack in August 1945, he said nuclear weapons were not the answer to a desire for security, peace and stability.
The Pope paid tribute to what he called the unspeakable horror suffered by victims of the Nagasaki atomic bomb. He said this place makes people deeply aware of the pain and horror that human beings are capable of inflicting upon one another.
At least 74,000 people died from the atomic bomb unleashed on the city - just three days after the world's first nuclear attack hit Hiroshima and killed at least 140,000.
Pope Francis will also visit Hiroshima and meet survivors of the atomic attack, known in Japanese as hibakusha, at the world-famous Peace Memorial in the city.

Michael Bloomberg Joins 2020 US Presidential Race

Billionaire former New York Mayor Michael Bloomberg has officially announced he is standing to be the Democratic Party presidential nominee.
In a statement, the 77-year-old said he was standing "to defeat Donald Trump and rebuild America".
He joins 17 other candidates vying for the Democratic nomination to take on Mr Trump in 2020.
As things stand, former Vice-President Joe Biden, Senators Elizabeth Warren and Bernie Sanders are the party's front-runners.

Nov 23, 2019

India, China to Hold 70 Celebratory Events to Mark 70th Anniversary of Diplomatic Ties

India and China will jointly hold 70 events to celebrate the 70th anniversary of the establishment of diplomatic ties, following an agreement reached between Indian prime minister Narendra Modi and Chinese President Xi Jinping at their informal summit in Mamallapuram near Chennai in October 2019.
Taking off from the Mamallapuram summit – where Modi also showcased Tamil Nadu state's links with China's south eastern coastal Fujian province – the statement said "the two sides will also engage in cooperative projects in studying ancient maritime links between India and China."
This will be through the establishment of sister-state relations between Tamil Nadu and Fujian Province, exploring the possibility of establishing an academy to study links between Tamil Nadu and Fujian and conducting research on maritime links between the two countries.

Jeremy Corbyn to Remain Neutral in Future Brexit Referendum

The Labour leader, Jeremy Corbyn, has said he would remain neutral in a future Brexit referendum if his party wins power in a general election on 12th December, 2019.
He said that he would not campaign for Leave or Remain so it would allow him, as Prime Minister, what he put, to credibly carry out what the voters then decide.

Nov 22, 2019

Tuvalu Rejects China Offer To Build Islands And Retains Ties With Taiwan

Tuvalu's South Pacific nation had rejected offers from Chinese companies to build artificial islands to help it cope with rising sea levels, an approach viewed as undermining Taiwan's influence in the region.
Tuvalu foreign minister Simon Kofe instead explicitly expressed support for Taiwan and said his country was working to set up a group uniting Taiwan's remaining four allies in the Pacific.
The show of support provides some relief for Taiwan President Tsai Ing-wen, who is seeking a re-election in January 2020 and has seen seven countries drop Taiwan as a diplomatic ally since she took office in 2016.

Israel PM Netanyahu charged with corruption in three separate cases

Israel's attorney general has charged Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu with bribery, fraud and breach of trust in connection with three separate cases.
Mr Netanyahu is alleged to have accepted gifts from wealthy businessmen and dispensed favours to try to get more positive press coverage.
The prime minister described the charges as an attempted coup, blaming them on a tainted process. He has also insisted he will not resign and is not legally obliged to do so.
Earlier, Attorney General Avichai Mandelblit said, he made the decision with a heavy heart, adding that it showed nobody was above the law in Israel.

US Warns Pak Of Risks From China Infrastructure Push

The United States warned Pakistan that it faced long-term economic damage with little return if China keeps pursuing its giant infrastructure push.
The top US diplomat for South Asia said the China-Pakistan Economic Corridor -- heralded as a game-changer by both Asian countries -- would profit only Beijing and said that the United States offered a better model.
She noted that the multibillion-dollar initiative was driven by non-concessionary loans, with Chinese companies sending their own labour and material.

Abe becomes Japan's Longest-Serving Prime Minister

Prime Minister Shinzo Abe became Japan's longest serving prime minister beating previous record holder Taro Katsura by having served for a total of 2,887 days, and vowed to work on tackling deflation and dealing with the nation's graying population during the remainder of his term.
Abe's term is calculated as an accumulated total of his first, brief stint as prime minister in 2006, and then his time further in the top position since 2012, which is now approaching eight years.

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