International Current Affairs MCQs

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US Treasury Secretary Janet Yellen is the first woman to head the Treasury and chair the US Federal Reserve.
She unveiled the first US banknotes printed with two women’s signatures. The new banknotes were being produced at the Treasury’s Bureau of Engraving and Printing (BEP) site. USD 1 and USD 5 bills were printed with signatures of Yellen and US Treasury Chief Lynn Malerba, the first Native American to serve in that role.

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Japan adopted a new policy promoting greater use of nuclear energy to ensure a stable power supply amid global fuel shortages and to reduce carbon emissions.
This is seen as a major reversal of its phase-out plan since the Fukushima crisis. The new policy seeks to maximise the use of existing nuclear reactors by restarting many of them and prolonging the operating life of old reactors beyond their 60-year limit, developing next-generation reactors to replace them among others.

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Afghanistan’s supreme leader has ordered judges to fully enforce aspects of the Sharia system. It is the Islamic law that include public executions, stonings, floggings and the amputation of limbs for thieves among others.
‘Hudud’ refers to offences for which certain types of punishment are mandated under Islamic Law, while ‘Qisas’ is translated as retaliation in kind.

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India and Saudi Arabia are in talks to sign a Mutual Legal Assistance Treaty (MLAT) to obtain formal assistance from each other in investigations related to criminal cases.
Saudi Arabia is only among 12 other countries that does not have either an MLAT or any other bilateral agreement with India to facilitate such investigations. India has so far signed MLATs with 45 countries. India is also in talks to finalise MLATs with Italy and Germany.

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US Centers for Disease Control and Prevention estimates that XBB.1.5 has more than doubled its share of the Covid-19 figures each week.
In the Northeast region of the country, XBB.1.5 is causing 75% of new cases. The XBB.1.5 strain is a relative of the Omicron XBB variant, which is a recombinant of the Omicron BA.2.10.1 and BA.2.75 subvariants.

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The United States has announced an additional USD 100 million to Pakistan for its recovery and reconstruction efforts.
The floods which occurred last year killed as many as 1,739 and affected 33 million people. The funding also includes humanitarian assistance to support flood relief and recovery efforts in refugee hosting areas.

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The UK Prime Minister signed a landmark defence agreement with the Japanese Prime Minister at London.
This is regarded as the most significant defence agreement between the two countries in more than a century, which allows UK forces to be deployed to Japan. The UK is the first European country to have a Reciprocal Access Agreement with Japan.

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El Salvador became the first country in the world to recognise Bitcoin as a legal tender two years ago.
It has recently approved a law to regulate the issuance of other digital assets by both the state and private entities. The bill aims to attract national and foreign investors while creating new financing opportunities.

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Indian Prime Minister Narendra Modi announced that India will establish a Global South Centre of Excellence.
The Centre aims to undertake research on development solutions of any of developing countries which can be scaled up and implemented in other members of the Global South. He announced this at the concluding session of the Voice of Global South virtual summit.

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The Paris Club is an informal group of creditor nations that functions as a platform for official creditors that resolves payment issues faced by debtor countries. All of its 22 member states belong to the Organisation for Economic Co-operation and Development (OECD).
The Paris Club has recently decided to offer financial support to the International Monetary Fund (IMF) for Sri Lanka’s debt.