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January 17, 2020: National / International Current Affairs
1. Chiefs of MI, ISPR changed in shuffle
• Army Chief Gen Qamar Bajwa on January 16, 2020 made two major changes in his core team, bringing in new heads of the Military Intelligence (MI) and the Inter-Services Public Relations (ISPR).
• Maj Gen Azhar Waqas has been appointed director general of the MI in place of Maj Gen Sarfraz Ali.
• Maj Gen Waqas is from infantry and has previously commanded 40th Infantry Division in Okara as its general officer commanding.
• Maj Gen All has, meanwhile, been appointed inspector general of the Frontier Corps (South) Balochistan. He had been the DG of the MI since October 2018.
• Maj Gen Babar Iftikhar has been posted as chief of the ISPR in place of Maj Gen Asif Ghafoor
• Maj Gen Ghafoor would, meanwhile, move to Okara as GOC of 40th Infantry Division.
2. 318 MPs suspended over failure to declare assets
• The Election Commission of Pakistan (ECP) on January 16, 2020 suspended membership of 318 lawmakers over failure to submit their annual statements of assets and liabilities by January 15.
• According to sources, those suspended include 70 members of the National Assembly, 12 senators, 115 members of the Punjab Assembly, 40 members of the Sindh Assembly, 60 members of the Khyber Pakhtunkhwa Assembly and 21 members of the Balochistan Assembly. The 70 defaulting members of the National Assembly include Minister for Science and Technology Fawad Chaudhry, Housing Minister Chaudhry Tariq Basheer Cheema, Minister for Religious Affairs Noorul Haq Qadri, Minister of State for Climate Change Zartaj Gul and former prime minister Raja Pervez Ashraf
3. Six-month FDI jumps 68.3pc
• The inflows of foreign direct investment (FDI) jumped 68.3 per cent to $1.34 billion during the first half of the current fiscal year compared to $796.8 million in the same period last year.
• The major chunk of these investments was concentrated in the telecommunication, power and electrical machinery sector s with China and Norway emerging as the top investors. The SBP figures showed surprise addition of Malta which invested $111.1m during the July-December period of 2019-20.
• The jump in the cumulative FDI numbers came following a one-off payment made by the telecommunication companies Telenor, Warid and Zong for licence renewal
4. Taliban have agreed to reduce violence in Afghanistan: Qureshi
• Foreign Minister Shah Mehmood Qureshi on January 16, 2020 said that the Taliban had agreed to a reduction in violence to meet a major US demand for signing of an agreement on troops withdrawal from Afghanistan.
• In a statement issued in New York, Mr Qureshi said a major development in Afghan peace process had taken place and that the Taliban would reduce violence.
• He said he was happy that Pakistan had fulfilled the responsibility for promoting reconciliation that it had accepted.
5. After UNSC prod, India to invite Imran to SCO moot
• A day after the P-5 meeting at the UNSC advised India and Pakistan to resolve their differences bilaterally, India on January 16, 2020 said it would invite Prime Minister Imran Khan to the Shanghai Cooperation Organisation (SCO) summit to be held in New Delhi later this year.
• `All eight countries and four observers will be invited,` said Ministry of External Affairs (MEA) spokesperson Raveesh Kumar when asked whether the Pakistan prime minister would be invited to SCO heads of government meeting in India.
• The SCO has been used as an important forum to break the ice between the two frequently aloof neighbours. Their militaries have held joint exercises under the aegis of the SCO, which was unusual
6. India asks China to avoid raising Kashmir dispute at UN
• India on January 16, 2020 asked China to avoid raising the Kashmir dispute at the United Nations Security Council, insisting it is a bilateral matter between India and Pakistan.
• The government issued a statement on January 16, 2020, a day after China requested a review by the UN Security Council of the UN observer mission in Kashmir.
• `China should reflect on a global consensus on Kashmir and avoid raising it at the United Nations,` India`s External Affairs Ministry spokesman Raveesh Kumar told reporters in New Delhi.
7. Parliament backs Putin`s pick for PM after `January Revolution`
• The Russian parliament overwhelmingly backed President Vladimir Putin`s surprise choice for prime minister on January 16, 2020 after what one daily called a `January revolution`, a major political overhaul that some say could set Putin up as leader for life.
• The State Duma, the lower house of parliament, gave its backing to Mikhail Mishustin, a 53-year-old with almost no political profile, endorsing his nomination with 383 votes of 424 cast.
• Nobody voted against him; there were 41 abstentions.
8. Trump`s impeachment trial opens
• As the Senate formally opened the impeachment trial on whether to remove Donald Trump from office, a nonpartisan congressional watch dog on January 16, 2020 dealt the Republican president a blow by concluding that the White House violated the law by withholding security aid approved for Ukraine by US lawmakers.
• Democrat Adam Schiff, who heads a team of seven House of Representatives members who will serve as prosecutors, appeared on the Senate floor to read the two charges passed by the House on Dec 18, accusing Trump of abuse of power and obstruction of congress arising from his dealings with Ukraine.
9. Ireland stun world champions WI in T20 opener
• Ireland rode a career-best 95 from opener Paul Stirling before keeping their nerve in a nail-biting final over to pull off a four-run win over world champions West Indies in the first of a three-match Twenty20 International series on January 15, 2020.
• The burly Stirling steered Ireland to 208-7 in their 20 overs.
• However, the home side appeared comfortably on course for victory bringing up their hundred inside 10 overs with just two wickets down until the game was decided in the last over.
• Needing 15 to win, all-rounder Josh Little (3-29) got rid of the dangerous Dwayne Bravo, one of two wickets to fall in the last over.
10. Cate Blanchett to head Venice Film Festival jury
• Actress Cate Blanchett will chair the jury of the Venice Film Festival in September, organisers said on January 16, 2020.
• The award-winning Australian actress will become the president of the jury for the festival`s 77th season, slated for Sept 2 to 12.
• `Venice is one of the most appealing film festivals in the world a celebration of this provocative and stimulating medium which is cinema in all its forms,` Blanchett said in a statement
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