International Current Affairs
Peru Declared Emergency after Oil Spill Hit Rivers
- Peru has declared an emergency three weeks after a major oil pipeline burst, affecting Chiriaco and Montna rivers in the country’s North-West. The pipeline spilled 3000 barrels of crude oil.
- These two rivers are the main source of water and food for at least eight indigenous communities. The government has told these communities not to eat fish from the polluted waters.
- The broken pipeline, owned by Petra Peru, a State-owned oil company reportedly used to transport between 5000 and 6000 oil barrels per day. Peru’s main oil pipeline was built more than 30 years ago. This has been the third oil spill in less than a month.
Pakistan Parliament became First in World to Run Entirely on Solar Power
- Pakistan Parliament became the first in the world on February 23, 2016 to completely run on solar power. First announced in 2014, the venture has been funded by the Chinese government as an act of friendship, with the solar power plant costing around $ 55 million.
- The project to run Parliament on solar power was launched in 2015 when Chinese President Xi Jinping visited and addressed the Parliament.
- There are some Parliaments like the Israeli Knesset, are partly run on solar power.
- The Parliament solar panels will generate 80 MW power. 62 MW sufficient for Pakistan parliament while 18 MW will be given to national grid.
NATO and EU Signed Agreement on Cyber Defense Cooperation
- The North Atlantic Treaty Organisation (NATO) and the European Union have signed a technical agreement to improve cooperation in cyberdefense at NATO headquarters on February 10, 2016.
- The agreement established a framework for emergency response teams from NATO and the EU to exchange information and share best practices.
- Since Russia’s 2014 annexation of Crimea, NATO and the EU, which have 22 member countries in common, have accelerated cooperation in a number of defense-related fields. The new agreement will facilitate information- sharing to improve cyber incident prevention, detection and response at both the EU and NATO.
- As per NATO Secretary-General Jens Stoltenberg it will prove a concrete example of the two Brussels-based organisations joining forces to counter modem forms of hybrid warfare.