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October 26, 2019: National Current Affairs
1. UN, US call for Pak-India dialogue to reduce tensions
• The United Nations and the United States are both urging India and Pakistan to resolve the Kashmir dispute through dialogue, as concerns about tensions in a nuclear-armed region grow.
• `When you have two nuclear powers that have fought military conflicts under a nuclear umbrella, itis important that all avenues be explored to increase contact and communication between the two sides,` a senior US official told journalists on October 25, 2019 evening.
• At a similar briefing, US Acting Assistant Secretary of State for South and Central Asia Alice Wells asked India for a roadmap on restoring normality in held Kashmir and sought the release of politicians detained since its Aug 5 annexation. In New York, a UN spokesman said Secretary General Antonio Guterres believed that dialogue between India and Pakistan `is absolute essential` for resolving the Kashmir dispute and his good offices were available if both sides needed help to engage with each other. The appeals came days after dozens of US lawmakers expressed concern at the increasingly tense situation in India-held Kashmir at a congressional hearing in Washington and emphasised the need for Delhi and Islamabad to resolve it peacefully.
2. Pakistan floats tender to buy 5 LNG cargoes for January
• Pakistan issued a tender on October 25, 2019 to buy five cargoes of liquefied natural gas (LNG) for delivery in January 2020, Pakistan LNG documents showed.
• The delivery windows are Jan 6-7, Jan 11-12, Jan 16-17, Jan 23-24 and Jan 28-29. The deadline to submit offers is on Nov 26.
• Asian spot prices for LNG slipped this week, weighed by global oversupply and rising floating storage, which offset some buying interest and plant maintenance, which reduced production.
• The average LNG price for December delivery into northeast Asia was estimated at $6.30 per million British thermal units (mmBtu), $0.50/mmBtu down from last week.
• Buyers from Japan, South Korea and Pakistan came to the market looking for winter cargoes, but market sources said it was not enough to reduce a significant global oversupply, adding that the market was overpriced in recent weeks.
3. Four countries call for reducing violence in Afghanistan
• Quadrilateral talks on Afghan peace process on October 25, 2019 called for creation of an environment conducive to negotiating an agreement that could end the conflict that has just entered its 19th year.
• The participating countries Pakistan, China, Russia and the United States that were represented through their senior diplomats at the meeting held in Moscow believe that reduction in hostilities by Afghan government and the Taliban and resumption of talks between the US and Taliban, which have been suspended since last month, could help in commencement of the intra-Afghan process, long thought to be the best bet for reaching a negotiated settlement of the dispute.
• This was the upshot of the discussions at the second round of thequadrilateral format that began in Beijing in July this year. The quartet was born out of a trilateral process between China, Russia and US, which also held their separate consultations in Moscow
4. Arif Abbasi removed as RDA chairman
• The Punjab government has removed the Rawalpindi Development Authority (RDA) and Water and Sanitation Agency (WASA) chairman Arif Ali Abbasi, replacing him with Tariq Mahmood Murtaza who assumed charge on October 25, 2019.
• A notification was issued by the Punjab Housing, Urban Development and Public Health Engineering Department.
• Since last month, there had been rumours that the provincial government wanted to change RDA Chairman Arif Ali Abbasi as owners of housing schemes, especially in Taxila and Chakri, had complaints against him. They said there were allegations that Arif Abbasi was also using delaying tactics in execution of Leh Expressway, a project very close to Railways Minister Sheikh Rashid Ahmed`s heart.
October 26, 2019: International Current Affairs
5. US Justice Dept opens criminal investigation into Russia probe
• Democrats accused President Donald Trump on October 25, 2019 of using the US Justice Department as a political tool after it opened a criminal probe into its own handling of the investigation into Russian interference in the 2016 election.
• News of the inquiry, which suggested wrongdoing by justice officials in the previous administration of Barack Obama, leaked late Thursday as the White House struggled to push back against a Democratic-led impeachment investigation targeting the Republican president.
• The inquiry could further muddy the political waters in Washington, raising questions about the now-ended Russia investigation led by Special Counsel Robert Mueller that saw 34 individuals and three companies indicted, and eight convictions including top members of Trump`s 2016 election team.
6. Russian czars’ home to reopen in summer
• Russia’s Alexander Palace, the last home of Emperor Nicholas II before he and his family were executed by the Bolsheviks, will reopen to the public next summer after million-dollar renovations, officials said on October 25, 2019.
• The palace, considered one of the best works of the Italian architect Giacomo Quarenghi, was built in the late 18th century for the future Emperor Alexander I and became the permanent residence of the last Russian czar in 1905.
• The palace, located on the outskirts of the former imperial capital Saint Petersburg, has been under renovation since 2012 and was completely closed to the public three years later
7. Moscow, Damascus deploy forces to Syria-Turkey border
• Damascus and Moscow deployed extra forces on Friday to Syria`s border with Turkey, even as Washington partially reversed a drawback to boost its own military presence near key Syrian oil fields.
• The United States earlier this month announced a pullout from Kurdish-held areasin northeast Syria, allowing Damascus, Ankara and Moscow to carve up the Kurds` now-defunct autonomous region.
• Turkey and its Syrian proxies on Oct 9 launched a cross-border attack against Kurdish-held areas, grabbing a 120-kilometre-long swathe of Syrian land along the frontier.
• The deadly incursion killed hundreds and caused 300,000 people to flee their homes in the latest humanitarian disaster in Syria`s brutal eight-year war
8. ‘World-class’ Surf Lake opens near Bristol
• The complex, called The Wave, cost £26m to build and can generate up to 1,000 waves an hour.
• It provides a gentle swell for aspiring surfers and fast, hollow waves for veteran surfers. Its owners call it “the perfect classroom” to raise awareness of environmental issues such as plastic pollution and carbon emissions.
• The surf lake is in the village of Easter Compton, 12 miles north of Bristol city centre. The site covers 75 acres, with the lake itself measuring 180m long and 200m wide.
• Alongside raising awareness of environmental issues, those behind The Wave hope to inspire social change. The first people to ride the waves were selected from hundreds of nominees
9. Facebook begins rollout of `news tab` in US
• Facebook on October 25, 2019 began rolling out its dedicated `news tab` with professionally produced content, the latest move by the social network to promote journalism and shed its reputation as a platform for misinformation.
• The news tab, being tested with some US users, will be separate from user`s normal feeds and include articles from panner news organisations, with Facebook relying on both human curation and algorithmic `personalisation`.
• Labelled Facebook News, the tab `gives people more control over the stories they see, and the ability to explore a wider range of their news interests, directly within the Facebook app`, said a Facebook statement
10. Saudi Arabia brokers deal between warring sides in south Yemen
• A Saudi-brokered agreement has been reached between the warring sides in the south of Yemen, paving the way for wider peace talks to end the five-year civil war.
• The Southern Transitional Council, backed by the United Arab Emirates, in August seized control of the southern port city of Aden, leaving the Saudi- and UN-backed government led by President Abd Rabbu Mansour Hadi in possession of little land or effective power. Hadi had already been thrown out of Yemen’s capital, Sana’a, in 2014 by Iranian backed Houthi rebels.
• The split in the south between Hadi and the STC pitted two normal Gulf allies – the UAE and Saudi – against one another. The newly negotiated government will involve a 24-member-strong government with an equal number of ministries allocated to the STC and Hadi supporters
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[catlist name=”October 2019″]
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