International Events and Issues September 2013

Below you can find important international events and issues which will help you in various competitive exams. Also, you may face questions from current affairs during your personal interview at SSB. So here we are presenting few notable international events and issues from September 2013 for current affairs preparation.

• The sixty-eighth session of the United Nations General Assembly opened on 17 September 2013. The President of the United Nations General Assembly was chosen from the GRULAC (Latin American and Caribbean Group) with Antigua and Barbuda’s John William Ashe being the consensus candidate, thus bypassing the need for an election.67th session was presided byvuk Jeremic. Subject for this year’s session is the post-2015 development agenda. Indian   Prime Minister Manmohan Singh represented India in the conference.
• Manmohan Singh’s Summit Meeting with US President Obama in Washington This is third Obama-Singh summit meeting, the previous ones being held in 2009 and 2010. The meeting will highlight India’s role in regional security and stability. The Leaders called for expanding security cooperation between the United States and India to address 21st century challenges in the areas of counter-terrorism, cyber, space, and global health security. President Obama also welcomed India’s decision to participate in the Rim of the Pacific (RIMPAC) naval exercise hosted by U.S. Pacific Command in 2014.
• German elections: Angela Merkel secures historic third win. Merkel’s Christian Democratic Union and its sister party won 41.5% of the vote, with analysts calling the win a personal victory for the 59-year-old, who is now on track to overtake Margaret Thatcher as Europe‘s longest-serving female leader. Merkel’s performance was compared to that of conservative chancellor Konrad Adenauer, who was the last chancellor to secure a Bundestag majority without need of a coalition partner since 1957, she came within a whisker of obtaining an absolute majority, falling just five seats short. Merkel will still have to rely on a coalition partner for a secure governing majority. 
• 2013 G-20  summit, Saint Petersburg Russia:-The 2013 G-20 (8th summit) Russia summit was the  meeting of theG-20 heads of government. The hosting venue was the Constantine Palace in Saint Petersburg, Russia, 5–6 September 2013.This meeting was the second time an Australian prime minister could not be in attendance,  During the summit, Indian Prime Minister Manmohan Singh focused on the ongoing economic crisis and urged the G-20 nations to pay more attention to their monetary policies. The summit was dominated by questions regarding the Syrian civil war and any potential international reaction to the attacks. Next summit will be presided by Australia in Brisbane on 15-16 Nov 2014.
• 2020 Olympics Tokyo, Japan:-IOC decided that 2020 summer Olympics host will be Tokyo.  In the final round, Tokyo garnered 60 votes as opposed to Istanbul’s 36, declaring itself the clear winner. While Madrid was bidding for the third straight time, Istanbul has never hosted any international sporting event of such magnitude. Tokyo though has hosted the Olympics in 1964 and co-hosted the World Cup along with South Korea in 2002. The decision suggests IOC members were convinced by Japanese Prime Minister Shinzo Abe’s reassurances that radiation leaks from the nuclear plant wrecked in the March 2011 earthquake and tsunami disaster pose no threat to Tokyo or the Games.
• Erna Solberg will be new pm of Norway:-in recent elections she defeated labor party prime minister Jens Stoltenberg.  She belongs to conservative party.
• At the 125th International Olympic Committee (IOC) Session in Buenos Aires, wrestling defeated a joint bid of baseball-softball and squash in a secret ballot to earn its place in the programme for the 2020 Olympics in Tokyo and the 2024 Games.
• War Crime Convicts to be dropped from Voting List in Bangladesh:- Bangladesh cabinet approved a law under which names of war-crime convicts will be dropped from the national voting list.
• Microsoft Decided to Buy Nokia’s Mobile Phone Unit and Services:-Software giant Microsoft Corporation on 3 September 2013 decided to acquire Nokia’s mobile devices and services. both companies have decided to enter into a transaction whereby Microsoft will purchase substantially all of Nokia’s Devices & Services business, license Nokia’s patents, and license and use Nokia’s mapping services.
• Jhumpa Lahiri’s book the Lowland shortlisted for Man Booker 2013 A novel by Jhumpa Lahiri, The Lowland, was shortlisted among the six books for the Man Booker Prize 2013. Lowland was published by Bloomsbury.
• Thomas Bach elected as the President of International Olympic Committee Thomas Bach of Germany was elected as the 9th President of the International Olympic Committee (IOC). He is the successor of Jacques Rogge of Belgium.
• Indira Gandhi Prize for Peace, Disarmament and Development Johnson Sirleaf was conferred with the Indira Gandhi Prize for Peace, Disarmament and Development 2012. She is the 1st democratically elected Liberian President.
• Syria’s Opposition National Council elected Ahmad Toameh as its Interim Prime Minister :-Syria’s opposition National Coalition on 14 September 2013 elected Ahmad Toameh as its interim Prime Minister.
• Tony Abbott Sworn in as Australia Prime Minister Tony Abbott was sworn in as Australia’s new Prime Minister on 18 September 2013 at Government House in Canberra, Australia.
• Nina Davuluri Became First Indian-Origin Contestant to Win the Miss America Pageant Indian-origin American, Nina Davuluri on 15 September 2013 became the first Indian-origin to win the Miss America pageant in Atlantic City, New Jersey.
• China Communist Party Leader Bo Xilai Sentenced to Life :-Top Communist Party leader Bo Xilai was on 22 September 2013 sentenced to life imprisonment by a Chinese court
• Al-Shabab, a Somali Terrorist Group Attacked the Westgate Mall in Kenyan Capital Nairobi Armed terrorists allied with al-Shabab, a Somali group loyal to al-Qaeda attacked the Westgate Mall in Kenyan capital of Nairobi on 21 September 2013.
• Megan Young of Philippines was crowned Miss World 2013 Megan Young of Philippines on 28 September 2013 was crowned Miss World 2013 at the Bali Nasa Dua Convention Center in Bali, Indonesia
• United Nations Security Council Voted to Eliminate Syria’s Chemical Weapons UNSC on 27 September 2013 approved unanimously a resolution with binding obligations on the Syrian government to eliminate its chemical weapons.

 Gaurav Vaishnav, Editorial Team

Gaurav is a defence aspirant and appeared for SSB interview 8 times, he is here to share his experience of different selection centres across India. Mail us to join our editorial team now.