Current Affairs Questions

Explanation :

• The non-OPEC countries which export crude oil are termed as OPEC+ countries.
• OPEC+ was born in 2017 with a deal to coordinate oil production among the countries in a bid to stabilize prices. Since then, the group has reached deals for members to voluntarily cut and ramp-up production in response to changes in global oil prices.
• Member countries include Azerbaijan, Bahrain, Brunei, Kazakhstan, Malaysia, Mexico, Oman, Russia, South Sudan and Sudan.

Explanation :

• The ISA is an Indian initiative that was launched by the Prime Minister of India and the President of France on 30th November 2015 in Paris, France on the side-lines of the Conference of the Parties (COP-21), with 121 solar resource rich countries lying fully or partially between the Tropic of Cancer and Tropic of Capricorn as prospective members.
• The overarching objective of the ISA is to collectively address key common challenges to the scaling up of solar energy in ISA member countries.
• The alliance is a treaty-based inter-governmental organization. Countries that do not fall within the Tropics can join the alliance and enjoy all benefits as other members, with the exception of voting rights.
• After the United Nations, it is the largest grouping of states world-wide.
• When the ISA Framework Agreement entered into force on December 6th, 2017, ISA formally became a de-jure treaty based International Intergovernmental Organization, headquartered at Gurugram (Haryana, India).

Explanation :

• On 1^st February, 2020, Maldives was officially readmitted to the Commonwealth, taking the count of the bloc's membership countries back to 54.
• Maldives joined the Commonwealth in 1982, and withdrew its membership in 2016, after being threatened with suspension over its human rights record and lack of progress on democratic reform.
• After due diligence, which included country assessment and consultations in accordance with the rules and procedures agreed by the Commonwealth Heads of Government in Kampala in 2007, Maldives has been re-admitted.
• The country will now be part of the Commonwealth Heads of Government Meeting (CHOGM) in Kigali, Rwanda in June, 2020.

Explanation :

• The North American Free Trade Agreement, or NAFTA, is a trade pact signed by the U.S.A, Canada and Mexico, which made it easier for companies in those three countries to move goods and supplies across North America’s borders.
• The agreement took effect on January 1, 1994, and essentially eliminated tariffs on most goods traded among the three nations.
• The United States Mexico Canada Agreement (USMCA) is an updated version of the nearly 25-year-old, trillion-dollar North American Free Trade Agreement (NAFTA). It includes major changes on cars and new policies on labor and environmental standards, intellectual property protections, and some digital trade provisions.
• The USMCA was proposed by United States President Donald Trump and was signed by President Trump, Mexican President Enrique Pena Nieto, and Canadian Prime Minister Justin Trudeau on November 30, 2018 as a side event of the 2018 G20 Summit in Buenos Aires.

Explanation :

• The Oslo Accords are a set of agreements between the Government of Israel and the Palestine Liberation Organization (PLO): the Oslo I Accord, signed in Washington, D.C.,in 1993 and the Oslo II Accord, signed in Taba, Egypt, in 1995.
• Oslo I, formally known as the Declaration of Principles (DOP), established a timetable for the Middle East peace process. It planned for an interim Palestinian government in Gaza and Jericho in the West Bank.
• Oslo II, officially called the Israeli-Palestinian Interim Agreement on the West Bank and Gaza, expanded on Oslo I. It included provisions for the complete withdrawal of Israeli troops from six West Bank cities and about 450 towns. Additionally, the pact set a timetable for elections for the Palestinian Legislative Council.
• On May 4, 1994, the first phase of the Oslo Accords was implemented, as Israel and the PLO signed the Cairo Agreement, giving the Palestinians control over Gaza and Jericho.

Details of Oslo Accords:

• Israel to withdraw from Jericho and Gaza, and eventually the West Bank.
• Five years of limited autonomy for Palestinians in those areas.
• Election of Palestinian Legislative Council within nine months.
• Establishment of a Palestinian police force.
• The question of Jerusalem was left undecided.

Explanation :

• On 2^nd December, 2019, Chinese President Xi Jinping and his Russian counterpart Vladimir Putinremotely inaugurated the “Power of Siberia” gas pipeline - a massive cross-border undertaking not only central to China’s energy security but also for bolstering special ties between Beijing and Moscow.
• The 30-year project is anchored by a $400 billion gas deal.
• The gas pipeline traverses three Russian constituent entities, namely the Irkutsk and Amur Regions and the Republic of Sakha (Yakutia).
• Gas is being sourced from Chayandinskoye and Kovytka fields in eastern Siberia, and is then piped to Blagoveshchensk — the last town on the Russian side of the border. From there, it is tunneled under the Amur River, before entering Heihe on the Chinese side.

Statistics

• Length: around 3,000 kilometers.
• Diameter: 1,420 millimeters.
• Working pressure:9.8 MPa.
• Export capacity: 38 billion cubic meters per year.

Significance

• Power of Siberia contributes to socio-economic development in Russia’s Far East. The gas pipeline facilitates gas supplies to and gas infrastructure expansion in the Russian regions, as well as the advancement of state-of-the-art gas processing and gas chemical facilities.

Explanation :

• The Instrument in Support of Trade Exchanges (INSTEX) barter mechanism was established in January 2019 by the so-called E3 i.e. France, Germany and United Kingdom, to allow European entities to maintain trade with Iran.
• The basic aim is to circumvent U.S. sanctions against trade with Iran by bypassing dollar transactions.
• The barter mechanism is part of Europe's attempt to salvage the Joint Comprehensive Plan of Action (JCPOA, or "nuclear deal") which saw Iran cease work on its nuclear program in exchange for lifting of international sanctions.
• However, the system has not yet enabled any transactions.
• On 2^nd December, 2019, Belgium, Denmark, Finland, the Netherlands, Norway and Sweden joined the INSTEX.

Explanation :

• The 28^th BASIC Ministerial meeting on Climate Change was held in Sao Paulo, Brazil between 14 -16 August, 2019.
• These countries expressed their concern for climate change and its adverse effects. They reaffirmed their commitment to the successful implementation of the United Nations Framework Convention on Climate Change-UNFCCC, its Kyoto Protocol and its Paris Agreement,based on the recognition of the needs and special circumstances of developing countries.

BASIC Countries

• The BASIC countries-Brazil, South Africa, India and China are a bloc of four large newly industrialized countries formed by an agreement in November, 2009.
• These nations have a common position on reducing greenhouse gas emissions and raising the massive funds that are needed to fight climate change.
• These four countries put together has one-third of world’s geographical area and nearly 40% of the world’s population.

Source: Civil Services Chronicle Online

Explanation :

It is a permanent body of SCO based in Tashkent created to combat terrorism, separatism and extremism. Each member sends its representative to RATS and the head of RATS is elected for a three year term. It assists interaction among the member states for preparation and staging of counter-terrorism exercises at the request of concerned member states. It prepares and conducts search operations and other activities for counter-terrorism.