1. India and Sweden sign a MoC to strengthen cooperation & promote research networking
Tags: International News
A Memorandum of Cooperation (MoC) was signed between India and Sweden to strengthen cooperation and promote research networking between research institutions from both countries.
News Overview
The MoC was signed by Dr. Akhilesh Gupta, Secretary, SERB and Dr. Andreas Gothenburg, Executive Director, STINT.
Its main objective is to promote opportunities for money mobility in both the countries.
The MoC aims to encourage academic collaboration through organising various mobility activities, such as exchange programmes, seminars, workshops and conferences.
About Science and Engineering Research Board (SERB)
Establishment -2009
Secretary - Dr. Akhilesh Gupta
Headquarters - New Delhi
About Sweden
Prime Minister - Mr. Ulf Christerson
Capital - Stockholm
Official language - Swedish
Currency - Swedish Krona
2. Chinese parliament appoints Li Qiang as the country's new prime minister
Tags: Person in news International News
Li Qiang was appointed as the new Premier or Prime Minister of China by the Chinese Parliament on March 11, 2023.
Overview of the News
Li Keqiang, who had held the position for the past ten years, was replaced by Li Qiang.
Li Qiang's nomination was approved at the annual meeting of the National People's Congress (NPC), the official body that adopts the resolutions of the Communist Party of China (CPC).
About China
it is an east asian country
It is the third largest country in the world in terms of total land area.
President – Xi Jinping
Capital - Beijing
National language - Mandarin
Currency - Renminbi
3. Saudi Space Commission discussed with ISRO
Tags: International News
From March 6 to 10, a high-level delegation from the Saudi Space Commission, led by Dr. Mohammad Saud Al-Tamimi, CEO, visited India to discuss space cooperation.
News Overview
The delegation interacted extensively with various entities in India, including the Indian Space Research Organization (ISRO) and Indian space companies such as New Space India Limited and Centum Electronics.
ISRO Chairman Dr. Al-Tamimi has been invited to attend the G20 Space Economy Leaders' Meeting in Bengaluru in July 2023.
Dr. Al-Tamimi invited ISRO Chairman to attend the Space Economy Forum later this year in Saudi Arabia.
The visit is viewed as a positive step towards strengthening the two countries' space partnership.
About Indian Space Research Organization (ISRO)
Establishment -1969 (by Vikram Sarabhai)
Headquarters –Bengaluru
Chairman and Secretary, Department of Space (DOS) – S. Somnath
About Saudi Arabian Space Commission (SSC)
Established - 27 December 2018
Space Agency President – Abdullah Alswaha
CEO - Mohammed bin Saud Al-Tamimi
About Saudi Arabia
It is a country located in West Asia.
It is the largest country in Asia and the second largest country in the Arab world.
The Gulf of Aqaba separates Saudi Arabia from Egypt and Israel to the northwest.
King - Salman
Crown Prince and Prime Minister - Mohammed Salman bin
Capital - Riyadh
Currency - Saudi Riyal
National language - Arabic
4. Indonesia's Mount Merapi volcano erupts, covering villages in ash
Tags: International News
Indonesia's Mount Merapi, one of the world's most active volcanoes, erupted on March 12, sending smoke and ash spreading over nearby villages.
An overview of the news
The volcano is located on the island of Java near Yogyakarta, the cultural capital of Indonesia.
The ash cloud has reached 9,600 feet above the surface. The area up to seven kilometers from the blast site has been restricted.
In 2010 a major eruption of the volcano killed over 300 people.
Indonesia, which has about 130 active volcanoes, lies on the Pacific "Ring of Fire", where the meeting of continental plates causes high volcanic and seismic activity.
About Mount Merapi
Mount Merapi is a volcanic mountain on the island of Java in Indonesia and is the most active volcano in Indonesia.
It was discovered by Mr. Morris in 1754 and is also known as the 'Mountain of Fire' because of its explosive nature.
What is a volcano?
A volcano is a type of mountain that erupts beneath the Earth's surface into a pool of molten rock.
During a volcanic eruption, underground pressure is created due to the formation of magma, which is molten rock mixed with gas.
Lava coming out of a volcano takes the form of a mountain.
After which whenever these substances come out of this volcano, they cause a big explosion.
5. US shuts down Silicon Valley banks in biggest collapse since 2008
Tags: Economy/Finance International News
California-based Silicon Valley Bank (SVB), the 16th largest bank in the United States, was closed on 9 March by the California Department of Financial Protection and Innovation.
An overview of the news
It is the biggest banking failure since the 2008 financial crisis.
It is considered the biggest financial crisis since the collapse of Washington Mutual and Lehman Brothers during the 2008 recession.
The regulator appointed the Federal Deposit Insurance Corp. as the receiver.
As of December 31, 2022, the Silicon Valley Bank had approximately $209.0 billion in total assets and about $175.4 billion in total deposits.
The FDIC created a new bank, the National Bank of Santa Clara, to hold the failed bank's deposits and other assets. The new entity began operating.
Why did SVB have to be shut down?
SVB announced the sale of securities worth $21 billion from its portfolio.
The company said that to strengthen its financial position, shares worth $ 2.25 billion are being sold.
The widespread slowdown in the startup industry led to high deposit withdrawals in the bank, resulting in the move.
The increase in interest rates by the Federal Deposit Insurance Corp also messed up SVB Bank's math.
Experts believe that the biggest reason for the closure of SVB was the simultaneous withdrawal of money from the bank by its investors.
About Silicon Valley banks
It was established in 1983, it was the 16th largest bank in America.
It primarily invested in Silicon Valley based startups and provided banking related services.
It provided a range of services toventure capital and private equity firms, as well as private banking services to high net-worth individuals.
The firm had a deal with half of all venture-backed startups in the US in 2022.
As of December 31, 2022, the bank had close to $212 billion in assets with clients such as Shopify, Pinterest, VC firm Andreessen Horowitz, Crowdstrike and Teladoc Health.
6. India and Australia target $100 billion bilateral trade in next five years
Tags: Economy/Finance International Relations International News
Union Commerce and Industry Minister Piyush Goyal said on 11 March, Australia and India will target $100 billion trade in the next five years.
An overview of the news
Both the countries are currently dissatisfied with the $30 billion trade.
Both countries expressed their commitment to complete negotiations to expand the scope of the existing Free Trade Agreement by the end of this year.
He was addressing the media in New Delhi on the India-Australia 18th Joint Ministerial Commission along with Australian Trade and Tourism Minister Don Farrell.
On 29 December 2022 India and Australia implemented an economic cooperation and trade agreement (ECTA).
They are now negotiating to expand its scope for a comprehensive economic cooperation agreement (CECA).
Both sides are looking at firming up the ambitious CECA by 2023.
India-Australia Trade Relations
Australia is the 17th largest trading partner of India and India is Australia’s 9th largest trading partner.
India-Australia bilateral trade in goods and services is pegged at US$ 27.5 billion in 2021.
India's merchandise exports to Australia grew by 135% between 2019 and 2021.
India’s exports to Australia- Manufactured goods such as petroleum, medicaments, diamonds, jewellery, railway coaches and vehicles, milled rice and herbicides.
India’s imports to Australia - 82% of its imports from Australia are coal, gold, copper ore, aluminum oxide, liquified natural gas, manganese ore, aluminum waste, pigments, lentils, etc.
7. Indonesia moves capital from Jakarta to Borneo
Tags: International News
Recently, the Indonesian government unveiled the site of the country's new capital.
An overview of the news
The new capital, Nusantara, is located in the East Kalimantan province of Borneo, Indonesia.
The new capital city of the country will be called Nusantara.
The new capital will be asustainable forest city which will be developed keeping in mind the environment and will aim to achieve zero carbon emissions by the year 2045.
Why is Indonesia moving its capital?
Jakarta, the capital of Indonesia, has a population of about 10 million and three times the population of the greater metropolitan area.
It has been described as the world's fastest-sinking city and at the current rate it is estimated that a third of the city could be submerged by 2050.
The main reason for this is uncontrolled groundwater extraction, but the rising Java Sea due to climate change has increased this possibility.
Its air and groundwater are highly polluted, it floods regularly and its streets are so congested that its estimated congestion costs the economy $4.5 billion a year.
In view of all these problems, President Joko Widodo has envisioned the construction of a new capital, so that the country can have a "sustainable city".
About Indonesia
It was earlier known as Dutch East Indies (Netherland East Indies) and it became Independent from the Netherlands on 17 August 1945.
It is the world's largest archipelago consisting of 17,500 islands.
Borneo island of Indonesia is the third largest island in the world after Greenland and New Guinea.
There are more than 100 active volcanoes in the country and the most famous being Krakatoa and Mount Merapi.
It has the world’s largest muslim population .
Capital : Jakarta
Currency : Rupiah
President : Joko Widodo
8. India-US 5th Commercial Dialogue meeting held in New Delhi
Tags: International Relations International News
The India-US Fifth Commercial Dialogue meeting was held in New Delhi on 10 March.
An overview of the news
The meeting was attended by Union Commerce and Industry Minister Piyush Goyal and US Commerce Secretary Gina Raimondo.
The two leaders acknowledged that bilateral goods and services trade is set to almost double since 2014, surpassing a recorded US$ 191 billion in 2022.
Both sides welcomed the steps taken to enhance their commercial cooperation and tap the market potential in several sectors.
Both sides welcomed the efforts being made to enable an environment for investment by small and medium-sized industries and startups.
Both ministers recognized that small businesses and entrepreneurs are the lifeblood of the US and Indian economies.
In this context, both sides announced the launch of a new working group on talent, innovation and inclusive growth under the Commercial Dialogue.
It will take forward cooperation on start-ups, SMEs, skill development and entrepreneurship, including digital and emerging technologies.
An MoU was signed between the two countries on establishing a semiconductor supply chain and innovation partnership under the framework of the Indo-US Commercial Dialogue.
India-US Commercial Dialogue
It aims to facilitate trade and maximize investment opportunities in a wide range of economic sectors.
The last India-US commercial dialogue was held in February 2019.
Since then, it could not be held due to the pandemic and other factors.
After a gap of three years, it is proposed to relaunch the commercial dialogue with a strategic approach with a focus on supply chain resilience and diversification and new emerging sectors.
India- US trade relation
According to the Ministry of Commerce and Industry, India is the ninth largest trading partner for the US, while the US is India's largest trading partner and largest export destination.
During the calendar year 2022, bilateral trade in goods is expected to increase significantly, crossing USD 131 billion, thus doubling from 2014 (in 8 years).
The US is also the third largest source of foreign direct investment (FDI) for India, and the US is among the top five investment destinations for India.
9. Arun Subramanian becomes first Indian-American to be Judge of Manhattan Federal District Court in New York
Tags: Person in news International News
The United States Senate has confirmed the appointment of Indian-American Arun Subramanian as the District Judge for the Southern District of New York.
An overview of the news
With this, Subramanian has become the first South Asian judge to serve on this bench.
The Senate confirmed Subramanian's nomination on March 7 by a vote of 58–37.
Earlier, in September 2022, US President Joe Biden had announced Subramanian's nomination to the United States District Court for the Southern District of New York.
President Biden's announcement brings the number of announced federal judicial officers to 143, according to an official White House statement.
Subramanian received his Juris Doctor (J.D) from Columbia Law School in 2004 and his BA from Case Western Reserve University in 2001.
He is a partner at Susman Godfrey LLP in New York where he has worked since 2007.
Subramanian has taken up matters relating to false claims, victims of child pornography trafficking, consumers and persons injured by unfair means.
10. 19th BIMSTEC Ministerial Meeting
Tags: International News
Minister of State for External Affairs and Education, Dr. Rajkumar Ranjan Singh participated in the 19th BIMSTEC Ministerial Meeting hosted by Chair Thailand virtually from Bangkok on 9 March.
An overview of the news
During the meeting, a number of documents including the Core BIMSTEC Working Mechanism, Regional BIMSTEC and Rules of Procedure for BIMSTEC External Relations were approved for submission to the 6th BIMSTEC Summit.
The meeting also approved a draft agreement on the establishment of the BIMSTEC Center for Weather and Climate in India.
Apart from this, BIMSTEC Bangkok Vision 2030 was also approved. This will be brought up at the 6th BIMSTEC Summit.
The leaders also approved the Administrative and Disciplinary Rules of the Secretariat and the Revised Financial Rules and Regulations of the BIMSTEC Secretariat, which will enable expenditure by the Secretariat throughout the financial year with an approved budget.
About BIMSTEC
BIMSTEC whose full form is 'Bay of Bengal Initiative for Multi-Sectoral Technical and Economic Cooperation' is an international organization of seven South Asian and South East Asian countries.
It was established in 1997 to advance mutual trade, connectivity and cultural, technological and economic development in the region.
Out of its 7 member countries, 5 members – Bangladesh, Bhutan, India, Nepal and Sri Lanka are from South Asia and two countries – Myanmar and Thailand are from South-East Asia.
Initially, BIMSTEC included six areas - trade, technology, energy, transport, tourism and fisheries - for regional cooperation, which was later expanded to 14 areas, including agriculture.
Secretariat: Dhaka, Bangladesh
