20th November, 2024 Current Affairs

INTERNATIONAL
US embassy shut down over anticipated air attack in Kyiv.
•    The US embassy in Kyiv has been shut down over an anticipated air attack. The US Department of State Consular Affairs that the Emabassy in the Ukrainian capital received information of a significant air attack. 
•    The embassy will remain shut, and US citizens are advised to be ready to seek shelter immediately if an air alert is issued.
•    The warning comes a day after Ukraine launched US-supplied ATACMS missiles against Russian territory, following the permission granted by the outgoing administration of President Joe Biden on the 1,000th day of the war.

Global Hunger and Poverty Alliance Launched By Brazil’s President Lula.
•    Brazilian President Luiz Inácio Lula da Silva officially launched the Global Alliance Against Hunger and Poverty during the opening of the G20 Summit in Rio de Janeiro. 
•    This landmark initiative, involving 148 founding members, including 82 countries and a variety of international organizations, financial institutions, and NGOs, aims to accelerate efforts to eradicate hunger and poverty globally by 2030.
•    Currently, 733 million people face undernourishment globally, equivalent to the combined populations of Brazil, Mexico, Germany, the UK, South Africa, and Canada.
•    Lula highlighted Brazil’s achievements in reducing hunger, particularly through social programs that lifted over 24.5 million people out of extreme poverty. He reaffirmed Brazil’s commitment to eradicating hunger and leaving the FAO Hunger Map by 2026.

ECONOMY 
ADB approves 200 million dollar loan to strengthen Sri Lanka’s financial sector.
•    The Asian Development Bank (ADB) has approved a 200 million dollar policy-based loan to support Sri Lanka in strengthening its financial sector. This marks the second subprogram under ADB’s Financial Sector Stability and Reforms Program towards stabilising the country’s economy and manage the financial crisis started last year. 
•    The program aims to establish long-term growth by introducing structural reforms in the financial sector, focusing on sustainable recovery, resilience, and poverty alleviation. The bank appreciated Sri Lanka’s progress in stabilising macroeconomic conditions and improving its fiscal framework.
•    Key reforms under the program include enhanced regulatory oversight by the Central Bank of Sri Lanka. To support micro, small, and medium-sized enterprises, particularly women-led businesses, incentive packages including special loans will be introduced. 
•    Financial inclusion will be bolstered through the digitisation of personal information to enhance electronic transactions.

Germany assumes sabotage in damage to Baltic Sea telecom cables.

•    Germany has said it assumes that the damage caused to two telecommunication cables in the Baltic Sea was an act of sabotage. German Defence Minister Boris said it is difficult to believe that the cables between Finland and Germany, and between Sweden and Lithuania, were accidentally severed.
•    According to local operators, the first of the suspected incidents was an internet link between Lithuania and the island of Gotland in Sweden, followed by a damaged cable between Helsinki and the German port of Rostock early.
•    A second cable in the Baltic Sea was not working and investigations are underway.
•    The incident occurred in the same maritime region where the Nord Stream pipelines were sabotaged in 2022.
•    Meanwhile, the foreign ministers of Germany, France, the United Kingdom, Italy, Spain, and Poland said in a joint statement that European common security is challenged as never before.

Russian President Putin approves updated nuclear doctrine.

•    Russian President Vladimir Putin has approved the country’s updated nuclear doctrine today. The new doctrine sets out conditions under which Russia will consider using its arsenal. It allows for a broader use of nuclear weapons. 
•    According to the new doctrine, any conventional attack on Russia backed by a nuclear power could be considered a joint attack on Russia. Mr. Putin ordered the changes to the nuclear doctrine in September this year.
•    The move comes after U.S. President Joe Biden permitted Ukraine to use ATACMS missiles against targets deep inside Russian territory.
•    The Ukrainian military said that it had hit a large Russian arms depot near Karachev in the Bryansk region, 110 kilometres from the Ukrainian border. However, the Ukrainian military did not disclose which weapons were used in the attack.

ENVIRONMENT
India calls upon Developed countries to fulfill agreed financial requirements of Developing countries.
•    India has called upon the Developed countries to fulfill the agreed commitments relating to the adapting finance needs of Developing countries.
•    At the High-Level Ministerial Dialogue Climate Change Adaptation, during the CoP29 to the UN Climate Change Summit at Baku in Azerbaijan, India said, developing countries are suffering the impacts of climate change largely due to the historical emissions of developed countries. 
•    Developing countries are suffering the impacts of climate change largely due to the historical emissions of developed countries. The lives and livelihoods of people in the developing countries are at stake.
•    The urgent requirement of an ambitious flow of financial resources, India asserted that New Collective Quantified Goal (NCQG) needs to address slow Disbursements, lack of Flexibility to adapt to changing requirements, and complex approval procedures with stringent eligibility criteria that make it difficult to access Climate Finance.
•    The CoP28 Global stocktake decision emphasized the need to bridge the tremendous gap in adaptation, gaps in implementation that arise from the lack of sufficient attention and resources. It said, that at CoP28, parties to the Paris Agreement adopted the UAE Framework for Global Climate Resilience which acknowledges the urgent need for enhanced support and implementation resources from Developed countries to Developing countries.