67th BPSC Prelims: One-liners Current Affairs (International News)

Note: This post comprehensively covers the international news for the upcoming 67th BPSC preliminary exam. But, there may be some minor updates in coming days.

International News BPSC(67th)

• European Commission, in a global first, proposed a set of digital rights and principles recently.
  • It is an extension of the Berlin declaration on Digital Society and Value-Based Digital Government of EU council.
• In January, India officially began its eighth term as a non-permanent member of UNSC for the 2021-22 period. India was also president of UNSC for the month of August.
• The 16th Pravasi Bharatiya Divas (PBD) Convention was held virtually in New Delhi with the theme “Contributing to Aatmanirbhar Bharat“.
• High-level group to help build a South Asia-focused energy security architecture, named the South Asia Group for Energy (SAGE), has been set up under the Ministry of External Affairs (MEA).
• Government has recently released a draft Arctic Policy document in order to solicit public comments.
• The United Kingdom has invited Prime Minister of India to attend the G7 summit scheduled to be held in June 2021.
  • Apart from India, Australia and South Korea are also invited to participate in the proceedings of the summit as guest countries.
  • U.K. will use the G7 summit, as the opportunity to build back better from coronavirus.
  • Previously, in 2019 India participated in the G7 summit in Biarritz on invitation by France.
  • G7 is a bloc of industrialized democracies Canada, France, Germany, Italy, Japan, the United Kingdom, and the United States.
• The UN Treaty on Prohibition of Nuclear Weapons (TPNW) entered into force on 22 January 2021.
  • This treaty was officially adopted in 2017 due to efforts by International Campaign to Abolish Nuclear Weapons (ICAN).
    • ICAN is an international coalition of NGO’s running the campaign to advocate United Nations Weapon Ban treaty in about 100 countries.
    • ICAN also received the 2017 Nobel peace prize due to its efforts.
  • US, Russia, China, Britain, France, India, Pakistan, North Korea and Israel (countries possessing nuclear weapons) and NATO alliance did not support it.
• Last year, India and Mauritius signed Comprehensive Economic Cooperation and Partnership Agreement (CECPA).
  • It is the first trade agreement signed by India with a country in Africa.
  • Both sides have also agreed to negotiate an Automatic Trigger Safeguard Mechanism (ATSM) for a limited number of highly sensitive products within 2 years of the Signing of the Agreement.
    • This will automatically increase levies once imports cross a given threshold.
    • ATSM is considered as an effective tool in balancing trade among multilateral partners.
  • India also extended a USD 100 million Line of Credit to Mauritius to facilitate the procurement of Indian defence equipment.
• India has signed $50 million defence agreement with Maldives (between the Finance Ministry of Maldives and the Export Import Bank of India.)to boost maritime capability.
• Myanmar military grabbed power in a coup, third time in the nation’s history since its independence from British rule in 1948.
  • Military (also called Junta and Tatmadaw) has alleged that the general elections held in November 2020 were full of irregularities and that therefore, the results are not valid.
• Last year, U.K. had announced to apply for joining CPTPP– a free trade block of AsiaPacific Countries.
  • CPTPP is a free trade agreement between 11 countries in the AsiaPacific.
  • CPTPP was formerly known as the Trans-Pacific Partnership (TPP). After U.S. withdrawal from TPP, remaining members renamed it CPTPP.
• United States (US) has extended the New START (Strategic Arms Reduction Treaty) nuclear arms control treaty with Russia for five years.
  • New START treaty is the last remaining arms reduction pact between US and Russia.
  • The treaty (first went into effect in 2011) limits U.S. and Russia to deploying no more than 1,550 strategic nuclear warheads each and imposes restrictions on the land- and submarine-based missiles and bombers to deliver them.
• The year 2021 marks the golden jubilee (50 years) of 1971 India-Pakistan war that led to the liberation of Bangladesh.
• India and South Korea concluded their bilateral talks on defence cooperation.
  • India and South Korea have agreed to go for joint production and export of military hardware, enhance intelligence sharing and boost cooperation in cyber and space domains as part of overall expansion of defence and security ties.
  • South Korea also expressed interest in India’s two defence corridors.
    • Government is working on setting up two defence industrial corridors, one in Uttar Pradesh and another in Tamil Nadu, with an aim to ensure connectivity among various defence industrial units.
• Indian Air Force participated for the first time in Exercise Desert Flag-VI (annual multi-national exercise) hosted by the United Arab Emirates Air Force indicating India’s growing military ties with the Persian Gulf Region.
• After a gap of more than two and half years Indian and Pakistani delegations began the 116th Meeting of the Permanent Indus Commission.
  • IWT was signed in 1960, between India and Pakistan and brokered by the World Bank.
  • The treaty fixed and delimited the rights and obligations of both countries concerning the use of the waters of the Indus River system.
• Last year, leaders of India, US, Australia and Japan took part in the first-ever summit level talks of “Quad” nations, which was held virtually.
  • Quad or Quadrilateral Security Dialogue has often been stated as a grouping which brings together ‘four like-minded countries’ i.e., India, US, Australia and Japan.
  • The reference to like-minded here indicates towards convergence on geopolitical issues, especially the Indo-Pacific Region.
• First ever in-person meeting of the Quad was held (1st Quad summit).
• Last year, first meeting of the BRICS Contact Group on Economic and Trade Issues was held. It was held under India’s Chair.
  • It presented the calendar of events for BRICS CGETI 2021, which included the priority areas for deliverables, schedule and scope of the MSME roundtable conference workshop on Services Statistics, and the BRICS Trade Fair.
• Last year, One of the world’s largest container ships, named Ever Given, was wedged across the Suez Canal, blocking one of the busiest maritime trade corridors in the world.
  • Suez Canal is 193-kilometer-long artificial waterway in Egypt, to connect the Mediterranean Sea and the Red Sea.
• Last year, the 17th meeting of foreign ministers of BIMSTEC member countries took place.
  • The meeting, chaired by Sri Lanka, was held in virtual mode with the participation of all BIMSTEC Member States.
  • The meeting endorsed the BIMSTEC Master Plan for Transport Connectivity for adoption at the next BIMSTEC Summit and three MoUs / Agreements for signing at the next BIMSTEC Summit, namely:
    • The BIMSTEC Convention on Mutual Legal Assistance in Criminal Matters
    • MoU on Mutual Cooperation between Diplomatic Academies/Training Institutions of BIMSTEC Member States
    • Memorandum of Association on the Establishment of BIMSTEC Technology Transfer Facility (TTF) in Colombo, Sri Lanka.
• India’s Comptroller and Auditor General (CAG), has been appointed as external auditor of the Organisation for the Prohibition of Chemical Weapons (OPCW).
  • Conference of the State Parties of OPCW selected CAG as the External Auditor for a 3-year term starting in 2021.
  • In the past also, India’s CAG has held the position of External Auditor of OPCW during the period from 1997 to 2003.
  • OPCW was established by the Chemical Weapons Convention in 1997.
• India, Japan and Australia have launched the Supply Chain Resilience Initiative (SCRI).
  • In the context of international trade, supply chain resilience is an approach that helps a country to diversify its supply risk across a group of supplying nations instead of being dependent on just one or a few.
  • SCRI, initially proposed by Japan, aims to create a virtuous cycle of enhancing supply chain resilience with a view to eventually attaining strong, sustainable, balanced and inclusive growth in the region.
• Debt Trap Diplomacy by China:
  • Montenegro is struggling to pay off Chinese loan for a highway project, which has put the country in a dire financial situation.
  • In 2018, a report by the Center for Global Development highlighted eight Belt and Road Initiative (BRI) recipient countries at a high risk of debt distress due to BRI loans. These countries included Djibouti, Laos, the Maldives, Mongolia, Montenegro, Pakistan, Kyrgyzstan, and Tajikistan.
• Recently, violent clashes erupted between Israeli and Palestinian factions in the Gaza Strip which have ended with Israel and Hamas agreeing to an Egypt-mediated ceasefire.
• India-UK virtual summit was held recently.
  • During the summit, ‘Roadmap 2030’ was adopted to elevate bilateral ties to a ‘Comprehensive Strategic Partnership’.
  • During the summit, ‘Roadmap 2030’ was adopted to elevate bilateral ties to a ‘Comprehensive Strategic Partnership’.
  • While announcing the Enhanced Trade Partnership (ETP) in the virtual summit, UK government said that Britain and India will begin formal free trade deal talks later this year.
• According to recently released Stockholm International Peace Research Institute (SIPRI) 2021 report, the overall number of nuclear warheads in global military stockpiles now appears to be increasing.
  • Indian nuclear warheads increased from 150 at the start of 2020 to 156 at the start of 2021.
  • Pakistan and China’s nuclear warheads have also increased.
  • Russia and the U.S. together possessed over 90% of global nuclear weapons
• Recently, Russian nuclear major Rosatom began construction of Kudankulam Nuclear Power Plant (NPP) Unit 5 in India in cooperation with Nuclear Power Corporation of India Ltd (NPCIL), a PSU under the Department of Atomic Energy (DAE).
• Iran recently decided to develop Farzad B gas field domestically, cutting off India’s Oil and Natural Gas Corporation (ONGC) Videsh (OVL)’s hopes of landing the lucrative contract.
• Last year, the 16th meeting of Secretaries of Security Councils of SCO was held at Dushanbe, Tajikistan (current President of the SCO).
  • India and Pakistan agreed to cooperate in the joint fight against the threats of “international terrorism”, “extremism”, “separatism” and “religious radicalism”.
• After a brief impasse between UAE and Saudi Arabia, the OPEC+ nations finally reached an agreement over oil production level for its member nations.
  • OPEC: Created at the Baghdad Conference in 1960, OPEC is a permanent intergovernmental organization with Iran, Iraq, Kuwait, Saudi Arabia and Venezuela as the founding members.
    • With 40% of global crude oil production and 60% of international trade, OPEC is the biggest grouping to influence oil prices.
  • OPEC+, also known as Vienna Group loosely affiliated entity consisting of the OPEC members and major non-OPEC oilexporting nations. o Its members include Mexico, Russia, Oman, Uzbekistan etc. along with the members of OPEC.
• Last year, European Union (EU) released “EU Strategy for Cooperation in the Indo-Pacific”. It aims to solidify and defend the rules-based international order, to promote a level playing field and an open and fair environment for trade and investment etc.
• Last year, Australia, UK and US have announced a new trilateral program AUKUS.
  • AUKUS, by Australia, UK and US, is a new security alliance that aims for deeper cooperation in the Indo-Pacific and greater sharing of defence capabilities within the alliance.
  • The plan is to give access to cutting edge military technology to Australia by its two partners, including futuristic capabilities like artificial intelligence and quantum technologies.
    • As part of the pact, Australia will abandon its US $43 billion plan to build French conventional submarines, and instead build vessels based on US-UK technology.
• India and France reviewed their increasing bilateral collaboration in Indo-Pacific region. Move came against the backdrop of France’s anger over the creation of AUKUS, by Australia, UK and US .
• Last Year, the BRICS New Development Bank (NDB) admitted Bangladesh, UAE, and Uruguay as its new members as part of its extensive membership expansion program.
  • NDB is a Multilateral Development Institution (MDI) established during the 6 th BRICS (Brazil, Russia, India, China, and South Africa) Summit in Fortaleza (2014). Headquartered in Shanghai.
  • With an authorized capital of US$ 100 billion, NDB supports public and private infrastructure and sustainable development projects in BRICS nations, and other emerging and developing economies.
• Egypt is the fourth new member admitted into NDB, after Bangladesh, the United Arab Emirates (UAE) and Uruguay, further expanding the bank’s global outreach.
• Operation Devi Shakti– It is rescue operation being conducted by Indian Government to evacuate people from Afghanistan since the Taliban takeover.
• Recently, the Standing Committee on External Affairs submitted its report on ‘India and Bilateral Investment Treaties’.
• At the recently held 21st India-Russia summit, both nations signed a 10-year defence cooperation pact in the background of ongoing deliveries of the S-400 air defence systems. The major agreements signed in this summit:
  • Joint production of more than 600,000 AK-203 assault rifles to advance self-reliance in the defence manufacturing sector.
  • Promote greater economic cooperation with target to increase bilateral trade to $30b and bilateral investments to $50b by 2025.
  • Reserve Bank of India and Bank of Russia to jointly respond against cyberattacks,
  • Jointly fight against terrorist organizations like ISIS-Al Qaeda-LeT, drug trafficking and organised crime etc.
• India and USA agree on a transitional approach on equalisation levy(EL):
  • Both signed a pact for transition from EL (or digital tax).
  • EL was introduced in 2016 to tax foreign firms with no permanent establishments in India (Ex Amazon, Google etc).
    • Later US conducted investigation into such digital taxes adopted by Austria, India, Italy, UK etc stating these discriminated against US digital companies
  • In October 2021, 136 countries, including India, agreed to enforce a global minimum corporate tax rate of 15%, as well as an equitable system of taxing profits of big companies in markets where they are earned.
    • Deal requires countries to remove all digital services tax and other similar unilateral measures .
  • Proposed solution of global tax deal consists of two components: Pillar One, which is about reallocation of an additional share of profit to the market jurisdictions and Pillar Two, consisting of minimum tax and subject to tax rules.
  • As per India-US pact, India will continue to impose EL till March 31, 2024, or till the implementation of Pillar 1 whichever is earlier.
• First Summit for Democracy was a virtual summit hosted by the United States “to renew democracy at home and confront autocracies abroad” on December 9–10, 2021.
  • The Prime Minister (PM) of India advocated for democratic principles to guide global governance.
• Recently, the 50th anniversary of the Indo-Soviet Treaty on Peace, Friendship and Cooperation signed in 1971 was celebrated.
• The United Nations Security Council (UNSC) adopted the UNSC Resolution 2593 with India as the chair and sponsored by France, UK and US with 13 members voting in favour, none against. It addresses key concerns of Afghanistan.
  • Concerns shared by Russia and China (abstained from voting) included that groups, especially Islamic State (ISIL) and the Uighur East Turkestan Islamic Movement (ETIM) were not named specifically in the document.
  • India played an active role in ensuring the passage of Resolution that brought international pressure on state actors in Afghanistan and highlighted specifically the role of LeT and JeM.
• 21st meeting of shanghai cooperation organization (sco) council of heads of state held in dushanbe.
  • Iran joined as a permanent SCO member with Saudi Arabia, Egypt and Qatar as new dialogue partners of SCO.
  • SCO Summit was followed by an Outreach session on Afghanistan between SCO and the Collective Security Treaty Organisation (CSTO) where India highlighted the problems caused by growing radicalization and extremism in the broader SCO region.
  • The CSTO is a Russia-led military alliance that promotes the collective defence of any member that comes under external aggression.
    • Current CSTO members are Armenia, Belarus, Kazakhstan, Kyrgyzstan, the Russian Federation and Tajikistan.
• 6th Eastern Economic Forum summit:
  • Established in 2015, Eastern Economic Forum is an international forum held each year in Vladivostok (Russia).
  • It works towards the economic development of Russia’s Far East.
• Recently, the European Commission launched ‘Global Gateway’, EU strategy on global infrastructure financing with the aim to mobilize up to €300 billion in investments between 2021-2027.
• Recently, India joined the G20 ‘Troika’ and is set to take over its presidency in 2022.
  • Troika refers to the top grouping within the G20 that consists of the current, previous and the incoming presidencies — Indonesia, Italy, and India.
  • India will assume the G20 presidency on 1st December 2022 from Indonesia and will convene the G20 Leaders’ Summit for the first time in India in 2023.
  • As a Troika member, India will work closely with Indonesia and Italy to ensure consistency and continuity of the G20’s agenda.
  • G20: It is a strategic multilateral platform connecting the world’s major developed and emerging economies. The members of the G20 are Argentina, Australia, Brazil, Canada, China, France, Germany, India, Indonesia, Italy, Japan, Republic of Korea, Mexico, Russia, Saudi Arabia, South Africa, Turkey, the United Kingdom, the United States and the European Union.
• India and USA sign project agreement for air-launched unmanned aerial vehicle (ALUAV).
• The United Nations General Assembly (UNGA) has granted Observer Status to International Solar Alliance (ISA) by adopting resolution 76/123.
  • Granting of the status would help provide for a well defined cooperation between the Alliance and UN that would benefit global energy growth and development.
  • It will also provide a choice to ISA to have permanent office in the UN HQ (New York).
• Indian Ocean Dialogue (IOD):
  • Hosting the 8 th edition of Indian Ocean Dialogue (IOD), India highlighted region’s importance and need to keep it safe and secure.
  • IOD is a track 1.5 forum (where government officials who participate in unofficial capacity and non-official actors work together) of Indian Ocean Rim Association.
• 3rd India-Central Asia dialogue between foreign ministers held in delhi:
  • Dialogue was held between India and 5 Central Asian Countries: Kazakhstan, Kyrgyz Republic, Tajikistan, Turkmenistan and Uzbekistan.
  • These 5 Central Asian countries are also members of the Organisation of Islamic Cooperation, and they skipped the meeting organized by Pakistan on the situation of Afghanistan to attend the dialogue in Delhi.
• Recently, Sri Lankan authorities have detained 68 Indian fishermen and 10 boats on charges of alleged poaching and illegal fishing in the island nation’s waters.
• The US government’s latest immigrant-friendly policy amendment is likely to be particularly beneficial for Indian women whose spouses hold H-1B or L-1 visas, as they will now be allowed up to 180 days auto extension on work authorisation.
• The crisis at Belarus-Poland border because thousands of migrants who came to Belarus from the Middle East and Africa are trying to enter the European Union through Poland.
• American Airlines resumed India ops after a decade. The inauguration of this route by American is a clear indication of the growing demand momentum between India and the US.
• India, other countries released oil from strategic reserves. India’s move to release 5 million barrels of oil from its strategic reserves as part of a coordinated challenge led by the US against the OPEC+ producers’ cartel’s move to curb output, is the first time that New Delhi would be dipping into its reserves to leverage it as a geopolitical tool.
• Magdalena Andersson – Sweden’s first woman PM who stepped down within hours of being elected.
• Barbados – the world’s newest republic- Nearly 400 years after the country became a British colony, Barbados has become the world’s newest republic by removing Queen Elizabeth II as the head of the state.
• Parag Agrawal has replaced Jack Dorsey as Twitter’s new CEO.
• Turkey’s currency crashed with inflation running at more than 21%.
• Myanmar’s Aung San Suu Kyi has been sentenced to 4 years in jail for two charges — of inciting the public against the military and breaching the Covid-19 protocols in the country.
• Chinese govt’s push for ‘sinicization of religion’: It means transforming religious beliefs, faith, practice, rituals in accordance with Chinese culture and society.
• Saudi Arabia has banned the Tablighi and Da’wah group, also known as Al Ahbab, calling it a ‘danger to society’. This group is active in more than 150 countries and is the largest Islamic missionary movement.
• Gabriel Boric won with 56% of the votes became Chile’s youngest president.
• The United Arab Emirates (UAE) announced that it will end censorship of films that are released in cinemas, a decision that is being interpreted as the Gulf country’s effort to become competitive in the region and importantly, appear broad-minded and liberal to foreigners.
• United Arab Emirates passed a law allowing non-Muslims to marry, divorce and get joint child custody under civil law in the country. It is the first of its kind in gulf countries.
  • Last year, UAE reformed personal Islamic laws to decriminalise premarital sexual relations among couples, loosen alcohol restrictions and criminalise the practice of honour killing.
• The WTO panel’s sugar report against India:
  • On a complaint by Australia, Brazil and Guatemala, a dispute settlement panel has found India’s domestic support and export subsidy measures in the sugar sector to be in violation of international trade rules. India has rejected the report, said its sugar sector policies would not be impacted, and that it would appeal the findings.
• India, Russia blocked move to take climate change to UNSC: India and Russia have blocked a proposal that would have allowed the UN Security Council to deliberate on climate-related issues.
• India inks deal with Sri Lanka to jointly develop Trincomalee oil tank farm.
• India hosted the ‘Delhi Regional Security Dialogue on Afghanistan’. It was chaired by Indian NSA and was attended by the National Security Advisers from seven other countries (Iran, Russia, Kazakhstan, Tajikistan, Kyrgyzstan, Turkmenistan, Uzbekistan).
  • China and Pakistan skipped the meeting.
  • Taliban was not invited.
• Kazakhstan’s President called in the Collective Security Treaty Organisation (CSTO) to help quell protests over the hike in fuel prices in the country.
  • Collective Security Treaty Organization (CSTO) is a Moscow-led military alliance, comprising Russia, Armenia, Belarus, Kazakhstan, Kyrgyzstan and Tajikistan.
• Australia enacted Online Safety Act which allow the government to hold social media companies responsible for the trolling comments and content posted on their website.
• The capital of Indonesia is being shifted from Jakarta to East Kalimantan, and will be called Nusantara.
• A 2005 satellite deal between Antrix Corporation — the commercial arm of the Indian Space Research Organisation (ISRO) – and Devas Multimedia Pvt Ltd, a start-up headquartered in Bengaluru, is at the heart of a global legal tussle between the Indian government and foreign investors in Devas.
  • Recently, the Supreme Court upheld a order of the National Company Law Tribunal (NCLT) to liquidate Devas on the ground that the firm was created under fraudulent circumstances.
• Aafia Siddiqui is a Pakistani neuroscientist who studied in the United States. She is currently serving an 86-year prison sentence after being convicted on terrorism charges in Manhattan,US in 2010.
• Recently, India and the United Kingdom have launched formal Free Trade Agreement (FTA) negotiations with the aim of concluding an early harvest trade agreement over the next few months.
• In a rare move, the United Kingdom’s domestic spy agency, MI5, has warned that an alleged Chinese agent has infiltrated the British parliament and has been working on behalf of China’s governing Communist Party to interfere in UK politics.
• Recently, Britain’s Prince Andrew was stripped of his royal patronages and military titles after a US court refused to dismiss a civil lawsuit pertaining to a case of sexual assault.
• The United States House of Representatives unveiled the ambitious America Creating Opportunities for Manufacturing, Pre-Eminence in Technology, and Economic Strength Act of 2022, or the America COMPETES Act of 2022, which proposes to open up new vistas for talented individuals from across the world with a new start-up visa. It can increase opportunities for Indians in the US.
• Truckers’ protests in Canada over Covid-19 vaccine mandate: Its a protests over Canada’s new restrictions on unvaccinated truckers. The demonstrations initially began as a peaceful protest against the rules in place for unvaccinated or partially vaccinated cross-border truck drivers.
  • Government used rarely-used emergency powers to crack down on the protests.
• On several American campuses, a new battlefront is emerging: caste is making its way into anti-discrimination frameworks, and drawing Hindu rightwing backlash.
  • After California State University (CSU) announced last month that it had added caste as a protected category against discrimination, a section of the faculty protested, fearing it could be used to target teachers of Indian and South Asian descent.
• India and Australia have announced that they are set to conclude an interim trade agreement in very soon and a Comprehensive Economic Cooperation Agreement (CECA) within 12-18 months.
• Tata Group airlines Air India and AirAsia India signed an agreement on interline considerations on irregular operations (IROPs), that will allow the two airlines to transfer passengers to one another in case of disrupted operations.
• India has lashed out at the Organisation of the Islamic Cooperation for being “communal minded” amid the Karnataka hijab row.
• Israel’s Prime Minister Naftali Bennett undertakes a two-day official visit to Bahrain, one of the seven Gulf countries whose relations with Israel have been sour on account of the Israel-Palestine conflict. The visit is being called a historic first.
• China backed Argentina’s claim to the Falkland Islands which is a territory of United Kingdom so United Kingdom objected to China’s backing.
  • There is a long-standing dispute on the Falkland Islands between UK and Argentina.
• India-UAE trade agreement: India and the UAE have signed a Comprehensive Economic Partnership Agreement (CEPA) with the aim of increasing bilateral merchandise trade to $100 billion by 2030.
• SWIFT: The SWIFT system stands for the Society for Worldwide Interbank Financial Telecommunication and is a secure platform for financial institutions to exchange information about global monetary transactions such as money transfers.
  • The United States and European Union are cutting off a number of Russian banks from the main international payment gateway, SWIFT.
  • Prior to this, only one country had been cut off from SWIFT — Iran.
• Nepal House of Representatives approved Millennium Challenge Corporation Nepal Compact, a $500 million grant from the US to build power and road infrastructure projects. The biggest American financial pledge to Nepal so far, it was signed more than four years ago, but ratification was delayed by criticism that it undermined Nepal’s sovereignty.
• Switzerland has broken its 200-year long neutrality policy to sanction Moscow and its leaders. It also announced it would join the European Union (EU) in closing the Swiss airspace to Russian aeroplanes, curtailing entry to the Swiss with Russian connections and imposing financial sanctions on Russian President Vladimir Putin and other leaders.
• Ukraine’s President Volodymyr Zelenskyy has signed a law to legalise cryptocurrencies to establish a legal framework through which cryptocurrencies can be operated in the country in a regulated ecosystem.
• China’s new land border law has come into effect from 1 st January, 2022. It makes China’s borders ‘sacred and inviolable’. .
  • The law is not meant specifically for the border with India however, the 3,488-km boundary remains disputed, and in India, some experts read it as a Chinese attempt to stay put at current positions. They feel it could create further hurdles in the resolution of the 17-month-long military standoff.
• India is in dialogue with Israel for concluding a Free Trade Agreement (FTA) on the occasion of 30th anniversary of the establishment of diplomatic ties between the two countries.
  • India-Israel full diplomatic relations were established in 1992, which were upgraded to a strategic level in 2017.
• The USA, is resisting the proposed sustainable financing model by WHO.
  • A proposal by the WHO’s working group on sustainable financing calls for members’ mandatory contributions to rise gradually to account for 50 per cent of agency’s core budget by 2028, from less than 20 per cent now.
  • USA: U.S. government is opposing the reform because it has concerns about the WHO’s ability to confront future threats, including from China.
• Pakistan launches first ever National Security Policy (NSP) 2022-2026. It seeks to co-locate Pakistan in emerging global trends and articulate Pakistan’s national security vision and interests.
• India, Pakistan exchange list of nuclear installations, prisoners:
  • Pakistan and India exchanged a list of their nuclear installations that cannot be attacked in case of an escalation in hostilities, as part of an annual ritual that has been in practice between the two neighbours since 1992.
    • Lists of nuclear installation were exchanged as per the Agreement on Prohibition of Attacks against Nuclear Installations and Facilities, signed in 1988 and ratified in 1991.
  • The two countries also exchanged lists of prisoners held in each other’s prisons, which include civilians, defence personnel and fishermen.
• India hosted the first India-Central Asia summit in virtual format-
  • It was attended by Presidents of all five central Asian republics; Kazakhstan, Kyrgyzstan, Tajikistan, Turkmenistan and Uzbekistan.
  • The Leaders agreed to institutionalise the Summit mechanism by deciding to hold it every 2 years.
  • India – Central Asia Centre would be set up in New Delhi which could act as the Secretariat for the India – Central Asia Summit.
  • Countries agreed to further cooperation to setup joint working groups on Afghanistan and use of Chabahar port.
• China’s status as a ‘developing country’ at the WTO has become a contentious issue since China is deriving benefits reserved for developing countries under WTO norms. China is an upper middle-income country.
  • Therefore, many nations have called on China to either refrain from seeking benefits available to developing countries or forego its classification as a developing country.
  • There are no WTO definitions of “developed” and “developing” countries. Members announce for themselves whether they are “developed” or “developing” countries.
    • However, other members can challenge the decision of a member to make use of provisions available to developing countries
• 5 united nations security council (unsc) states pledge to avoid nuclear war: In a joint statement, UNSC’s Permanent members (Britain, China, France, Russia and U.S.) pledged to prevent further spread of nuclear weapons and to avoid a nuclear war.
  • They also emphasized importance of preserving and complying with bilateral and multilateral non-proliferation, disarmament, and arms control agreements and commitments.
• Counter-terrorism Committee Executive Directorate (CTED): India, which will chair the UNSC Counter-Terrorism Committee (CTC) in 2022, voted in favour of a resolution to renew CTED’s mandate until December 31, 2025.
  • As CTC chair, India will make determined efforts to further enhance the role of CTC in strengthening multilateral response to counter terrorism.
  • CTED was established by UNSC Resolution 1535 in 2004 as an expert body to support CTC.
• Collective Security Treaty Organization (CSTO): Thousands of troops from CSTO arrived in Kazakhstan to restore order amid spiraling unrest in Kazakhstan.
  • CSTO is a Russia-led military alliance that promotes the collective defence of any member that comes under external aggression.
• Taliban, Afghan civil society begin Oslo talks:
  • The first Taliban delegation to visit Europe since returning to power in Afghanistan began talks in Oslo (Norway) with Afghan civil society members focused on human rights, ahead of highly-anticipated meetings with Western officials.
  • The humanitarian situation has deteriorated drastically since August, when the Taliban stormed back to power 20 years after being toppled.
  • International aid came to a sudden halt after their takeover, worsening the plight of millions of people who were already suffering from hunger after several severe droughts.
• Henley Passport Index: It is released by Henley & Partners, a global leader in residence and citizenship planning.
  • India’s passport power has improved this quarter compared to 2021. It now ranks 83rd (90th rank last year).
  • Japan and Singapore top the index.
• Operation Ganga was an evacuation operation by the Government of India to evacuate the Indian citizens amidst the 2022 Russian invasion of Ukraine, who had crossed over to neighboring countries.  ©crackingcivilservices.com