1. Croatia adopts Euro currency, also included in Europe's free passport club
Tags: International News
On January 1, 2023, Croatia adopted the euro currency and also joined Europe's free passport club (Schengen area), nearly a decade after joining the European Union.
Important facts
On January 1, 2023, Croatia with a population of about 4 million said goodbye to its Kuna currency and became the 20th member of the Eurozone.
It will be the 27th country in the world's largest passport-free Schengen zone, which enables more than 400 million people to move freely within its member states.
Adoption of the euro will help Croatia's economy at a time when global inflation has been rising since Russia's invasion of Ukraine in February 2022, which has pushed up fuel and food prices.
It will also boost Croatia's major tourism industry, which accounts for 20 percent of its gross domestic product (GDP).
The Eurozone consists of 19 members of the European Union (EU), which uses the Euro as their official currency.
What is the Schengen Zone?
The border-free Schengen Area guarantees visa-free movement for over 400 million EU citizens, as well as tourists, students living in the EU and visiting the EU.
Free movement of persons enables every EU citizen to travel, work and live in an EU country without special formalities.
The Schengen provision eliminates checking at the EU's internal borders, while providing a set of rules for controls at external borders.
About Croatia
Croatia is a country located in the northwestern part of the Balkan Peninsula.
Prime Minister: Andrej Plenković
President: Zoran Milanović
Capital: Zagreb
Currency :euro
2. Elon Musk becomes first person ever to lose $200 billion
Tags: Person in news International News
According to Bloomberg Billionaires Index Tesla Chief Elon Musk became the only person in history to lose $200 billion from their net worth.
Important facts
Musk, who recently acquired the micro-blogging platformTwitter for $44 billion, was the second person to amass over $200 billion after Jeff Bezos.
After the acquisition, Musk had a takeover of Twitter, resulting in a loss of Tesla shares.
According to the Bloomberg Billionaires Index, Musk's wealth declined to $137 billion. Musk also sold several Tesla shares throughout the year.
Currently, Musk's stake in his Space Exploration Technologies Corp. is valued at $44.8 billion, which is higher than his roughly $44 billion position in Tesla stock (he still has options worth an estimated $27.8 billion).
Elon Musk became the richest person in the world when his wealth reached $340 billion on November 4, 2021.
He lost the title to French fashion and cosmetics magnate Bernard Arnault in early December 2022.
Who is Elon Musk?
He is the charismatic chief executive officer (CEO) of electric car maker Tesla and rocket manufacturer SpaceX.
Musk completed the deal to buy Twitter in October 2022, becoming the owner of the social media company.
Born and raised in South Africa, Musk spent time in Canada before moving to the United States.
3. 10th edition of Dhaka Literary Festival
Tags: Festivals International News
After being cancelled for three consecutive years due to the COVID-19 pandemic, the 10th edition of Dhaka Lit Fest (DLF), Bangladesh's biggest international literary festival, is all set to take place on January 5-8, 2023.
Important facts
The event will be held on the historic grounds of the Bangla Academy in Dhaka.
More than 500 literary personalities across the globe including Nobel Prize Winner Abdulrazak Gurnah will be taking part in the festival.
The four-day event will feature internationally acclaimed authors including Amitav Ghosh, Hanif Qureshi, Alexandra Pringle, Gitanjali Shree, Daisy Rockwell, Esther Freud, Joy Goswami, Kaiser Haque, among others.
It will feature over 175 sessions with discussions on science and technology, activities for children and young adults, film screenings, theatre, music and cultural performances.
The organisers of DLF have termed it as a 'festival of ideas'.
Films, OTT, science and other topics of public interest will also be discussed in this programme.
There will be performances for children as well as for women. The Dhaka Lit Fest will also host discussions on health, food and cooking, among other topics.
About Dhaka Lit Fest
Sadaf Saaz, Ahsan Akbar and Kazi Anis Ahmed are the directors of the Dhaka Lit Fest (DLF).
It began in 2011 with the commitment to promote Dhaka, and Bangladeshi literature and culture to the world.
Dhaka Lit Fest has been a popular annual event in the winter calendar of Bangladesh.
About 30,000 people participated in the ninth Dhaka Lit Fest last held in 2019.
4. India, Austria to sign 5 agreements
Tags: International Relations International News
External Affairs Minister S Jaishankar said that India and Austria will sign five agreements on January 2, 2023 and two of them are in the interest of the Indian community living in Austria.
Important facts
The two agreements would be in the interest of the Indian community.
There is an agreement on 'Migration and Mobility' for people who want to work in Austria and who want to come to India for business, or who come here as students and professionals.
Another agreement is on the ‘Working Holiday’ program that will enable Indian students in Austria to work for 6 months.
S Jaishankar is on an official visit to Austria where he held a meeting with Austrian Foreign Minister Alexander Schallenberg.
This is the first India-Austria EAM-level visit in the last 27 years which is taking place in 2023 against the backdrop of 75 years of diplomatic relations.
About Austria
It is a largely mountainous landlocked country of south-central Europe.
Chancellor: Karl Nehammer
President: Alexander Van der Bellen
Capital: Vienna
Currency : euro
Official Language : German
5. Inacio Lula da Silva sworn in as the President of Brazil for the 3rd time
Tags: Person in news International News
The veteran left wing Brazilian leader Luiz Inacio Lula da Silva was sworn in as the President of Brazil for the third time on 1 January 2023 for a four year term. The oath taking ceremony was held in the Brazilian capital city of Brasilia. Geraldo Alckmin was sworn in as the Vice President of Brazil.
Lula, who belongs to the Worker Party, led the country from 2003 to 2010 ,defeated the incumbent president Jair Bolsonaro in the bitterly contested runoff Presidential election held in October 2022.
His victory has politically divided the country. The supporters of f Jair Bolsonaro have protested for over two months, alleging that the election was stolen and called for a military coup to stop Lula from returning to office in a climate of vandalism and violence.
Jair Bolsonaro has already left Brazil for the United States. He has repeatedly said he does not wish to attend the inauguration of his successor, where he would be expected to hand over the presidential sash in a sign of a stable transfer of power.
Brazil
It is the fifth largest country in the world area wise after Russia, Canada, China, and the United States.
It covers almost half of the South American Continent.
60% of the Amazon rainforest which is considered the lung of the earth lies in Brazil.
Capital: Brasilia
Currency: Brazilian Real
6. India assume the charge of the Wassenaar Arrangement
Tags: International News
India has assumed the chairmanship of the plenary of the Wassenaar Arrangement on 1 January 2023 for one year. At the 26th annual Plenary of the WA held in Vienna, Austria on 30 November-01 December 2022, Ambassador Eoin O'Leary of Ireland handed over the Chairmanship to Ambassador Jaideep Mazumdar, Ambassador and Permanent Representative to UN and International Organizations in Vienna.
India joined the Wassenaar Arrangement (WA) on 08 December 2017 as its 42nd Participating State.
Wassenaar Arrangement
The Wassenaar Arrangement was established in July 1996 at Wassenaar, Netherlands. It is a voluntary export control regime of 42 member countries. The member countries exchange information on transfers of conventional weapons and dual-use goods and technologies.
The main aim of the Wassenaar agreement is to discourage its member countries from exporting conventional weapons and dual-use goods and technologies to countries which are a threat to global peace.
The WA Plenary is the decision-making and governing body of the Arrangement that operates on consensus. It is composed of representatives of all Participating States who normally meet once a year at Vienna, Austria.
7. 1668 Journalists killed in the last 20 years: Reporters without Borders.
Tags: Reports International News
According to the yearend report of the Reporters without Borders (RSF) which was published on 31 December 2022, a total of 1,668 journalists have been killed worldwide in connection with their work of journalism over the past two decades (2003–2022), due to murders, contract killings, ambushes, war zone deaths, and fatal injuries.
The report says that on an average every year 80 journalists lost their lives.
Due to the war in Syria over 144 journalists lost their lives in 2012 and 142 journalists died in 2013.
According to the RSF, in the last two decades, 80% of the deaths of journalists have happened in 15 countries. Syria and Iraq have the highest death rates, with a total of 578 journalists killed there over the past twenty years. This is about 1/3 of the world’s death rate.
After these dangerous countries the most unsafe countries for journalists were Afghanistan, Yemen, and Palestine.
Reporters without Borders (RSF)
Reporters without Borders (RWB) is an international non-profit organisation.
- It was founded by four journalists in 1985 in Montpellier, France.
- RSF works to safeguard and promote the freedom of information.
- Headquarters: Paris, France
- It has 7 offices in London, Brussels, Tunis, Washington DC, Rio de Janeiro, Dakar, and Taipei.
8. Former Pope Benedict XVI dies aged 95
Tags: Person in news International News
According to a statement released by the Vatican the former Pope Benedict XVI died on 31 December 2022 in the Mater Ecclesiae Monastery in the Vatican. He was 95 years old.
The head of the Catholic Church, former Pope Benedict, was the first pope in 600 years to resign. He resigned in 2013 and was replaced by the present pope Francis.
Pope Benedict was the first German to become pope in 1000 years. He was the head of the Vatican City from 19 April 2005 until his resignation on 28 February 2013.
He was born as Joseph Aloisius Ratzinger on April 16, 1927, in the southern German village of Marktl, close to Austria.
Pope and Vatican City
Pope is a title which is given to the Bishop of Rome who is the head of the Roman Catholic Church. He is also the head of the sovereign country of Vatican City.
Roman Catholics are the largest of the three major branches of Christianity. The other branches of Christianity are Protestants and orthodox (Eastern).
Vatican City is the world’s smallest country which is located within the Italian capital city of Rome.
It is also the least populated country in the world.
The Holy See is the name given to the government of the Roman Catholic Church, which is led by the pope as the bishop of Rome.
St. Peter, disciple of Jesus Christ, was the first Pope. Jesus Christ is the founder of Christianity.
9. India, Cyprus signs three agreement during S. Jaishankar visits to Nicosia
Tags: place in news Person in news International News
External Affairs Minister S Jaishankar who is on a three day visit (29-31 December 2022) to Cyprus signed a number of agreements with his Cypriot counterpart Ioannis Kasoulides in the capital Nicosia on 29 December 2022. This is the first visit of S. Jaishankar to Cyprus.
Three agreement signed
Both the ministers signed agreements to;
- Increase defence and military cooperation between the two countries ,
- Letter of Intent on immigration and mobility to check illegal migrations , as well as the agreement on
- Cyprus joining the International Solar Alliance (ISA).
S. Jaishankar also released the commemorative stamp on the 75 years of Indian Independence and 60 years of establishing diplomatic ties with Cyprus.
The minister said India and Cyprus were collectively working on pressing issues such as food and energy security, maritime security, as well as on sustainable environment.
During his three-day visit to Cyprus, Jaishankar will call Annita Demetriou, President of the Cyprus Parliament's House of Representatives.
He will also address the business and investment community of Cyprus, apart from an interaction with the Indian Diaspora.
Republic of Cyprus
It is an island European country in the eastern Mediterranean Sea.
It gained its Independence from Britain in 1960. The country has a majority population which are of Greece descent while the minority population are of Turkish origin.
Turkey invaded Cyprus in 1974 and created a Turkish Republic of Northern Cyprus in 1983. Except Turkey no country recognises Turkish Cyprus.
India also recognises the Cyprus government.
Capital: Nicosia
Currency: Euro
President: Nicos Anastasiades
10. US Vice-President Kamala Harris names Indian-American Rajeev Badyal to the National Space Council Advisory Group
Tags: Person in news International News
The American Vice President Kamala Harris has named Indian American Rajeev Badyal to the National Space Council's Users Advisory Group (UAG). The UAG is tasked to maintain a robust and responsible US space enterprise and preserve space for current and future generations. The UAG is headed by US Air Force Rtd General Lester Lyles.
Rajeev Badyal is currently the vice-president of Project Kuiper of Amazon. Under Project Kuiper a number of Low Earth Orbit satellites will be launched by Amazon that will provide low-latency, high-speed broadband connectivity to unserved and underserved communities around the world.
The UAG will provide the National Space Council advice and recommendations on matters related to space policy and strategy, government policies, laws, regulations, treaties, international instruments, programmes, and practices across the civil, commercial, international, and national security space sectors.
Kamala Harris
She is the first woman to be elected as the Vice-President of the United States.
She was elected as the Vice President in 2020 and Joe Biden was elected as the President of the United States of America.
Her mother Shyamala Gopalan was a Tamilian who immigrated to the United States and married a Jamaican Donald Harris.
