Daily Current Affairs 28 October 2020 | UPSC Current Affairs 2020

 Current Affairs Of Today Are

1) Basic Exchange and Cooperation Agreement: USA

Basic Exchange and Cooperation Agreement for Geo-Spatial Cooperation (BECA) held in New Delhi it is the third IndiaU.S. ‘2+2’ dialogue

2+2 talks:

• They are a dialogue between two appointed ministers from each country. This meeting aims to discuss issues of strategic and security interests between the two countries.
• Defense and foreign ministers or secretaries meet with their counterparts from another country.
• India holds such talks with Japan and Australia, at the foreign secretary and defense secretary level.
• India holds ministerial-level talks only with the USA. Apart from India, the United States holds such ministerial dialogues with Australia and Japan also.
• The talks were announced in June 2017. The 2+2 dialogue has replaced the Strategic and Commercial Dialogue between the foreign and commerce ministers of the two countries that were held previously.

BECA:

• BECA will allow India to use the geospatial maps of the USA to get pinpoint military accuracy of automated hardware systems and weapons such as cruise and ballistic missiles.
• BECA is an important precursor to India acquiring armed unmanned aerial vehicles such as the Predator-B from the USA. Predator-B uses spatial data for accurate strikes on enemy targets.
• BECA is one of the four foundational military communication agreements between the two countries. The other three being GSOMIA, LEMOA, CISMOA.
• Initially, India had reservations about geospatial mapping on the grounds of national security, but they were later addressed by mutual dialogue and discussion between the two countries.

General Security Of Military Information Agreement

• GSOMIA allows militaries to share the intelligence gathered by them.
• Signed by India in 2002.
• An extension to the GSOMIA, the Industrial Security Annex (ISA), was signed at the 2+2 dialogue in 2019.
• ISA provides a framework for the exchange and protection of classified military information between the USA and Indian defense industries.

Logistics Exchange Memorandum of Agreement

• LEMOA allows both countries to have access to each other’s designated military facilities for refueling and replenishment.
• Signed by India in 2016.

Communications and Information Security Memorandum of Agreement

• COMCASA (Communications Compatibility and Security Agreement) is the India specific version of CISMOA.
• Valid for 10 years, COMCASA aims to provide a legal framework for the transfer of highly sensitive communication security equipment from the USA to India that will streamline and facilitate interoperability between their armed forces.
• Signed by India in 2018.

Other Maritime Developments Between India and the USA

• A maritime information agreement is also under active deliberation between India and the USA. Once concluded, India will have such arrangements with all Quad countries.
• Quadrilateral Security Dialogue (Quad) is the informal strategic dialogue between India, USA, Japan, and Australia with a shared objective to ensure and support a free, open, and prosperous Indo-Pacific region.
• In increasing military to military interactions, the USA has also posted a liaison officer at the Navy’s Information Fusion Centre for Indian Ocean Region (IFC-IOR) meant to promote Maritime Domain Awareness (MDA).
• The Information Fusion Centre serves countries that have White Shipping Information Exchange (White-shipping refers to commercial shipping information about the movement of cargo ships) agreements with India.
• MDA is defined by the International Maritime Organization as an effective understanding of anything associated with the maritime domain that could impact the security, safety, economy, or environment of a country.
• Recently, India posted a liaison officer at the USA Navy Central Command in Bahrain.

Other Discussion 

• Apart from BECA, India and the U.S. also sealed an MoU on Technical Cooperation in Earth Observations and Earth Sciences, and an agreement to extend the duration of the MoU regarding the Global Center for Nuclear Energy Partnership. The two sides also signed an agreement on the electronic exchange of customs data and a letter of intent regarding cooperation in traditional Indian medicines.
• A joint statement issued following the conclusion of the visit of the American dignitaries highlighted shared Indo­U.S. goals in the Asia-Pacific region and “emphasized that the Code of Conduct in the South China sea should not prejudice the legitimate rights and interests of any nation by international law”. 
• The two sides also decided to expand joint capacity building activities with partner countries in the Indo­-Pacific region. 
• BECA enables the exchange of geospatial data and information between the two countries and will improve the accuracy of India’s missiles in the future during precision strikes. It will help share geospatial maps and charts between the U.S. and India, which may have been acquired from multiple sources like satellites, UAVs, reconnaissance aircraft, aerostats, among others
• Data shared from BECA will help in identifying, updating, and tracking various types of target and their position, both on land and sea
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Source: The Hindu

2) Investor can now buy lands in J&K

• People, including investors, outside Jammu and Kashmir, can now purchase land in the Union Territory as the Centre notified new land laws for the region, ending the exclusive rights enjoyed by the local population over land under the now­diluted Article 370.
• Under the new J&K Development Act, the Centre has omitted the term “permanent resident of the State”, paving the way for investors outside J&K to invest in the Union Territory. 
• The Centre had been saying that Article 370 hampered development as investors were unable to purchase land before August 5, 2019.
• The Act enables the transfer of land “in favor of a person or an institution for the purpose of promotion of healthcare or senior secondary or higher or specialized education in J&K”.
• According to amendments made to the Jammu & Kashmir Land Revenue Act, Samvat, 1996”, only agriculturists of J&K can purchase agricultural land. “No sale, gift, exchange, or mortgage of the land shall be valid in favor of a person who is not an agriculturist,” it reads. 
• No land used for agriculture purposes shall be used for any non­agricultural purposes except with the permission of the district collector
• Under a new provision, an Army officer not below the rank of Corps Commander can declare an area as “Strategic Area” within a local area, only for direct operational and training requirements of the armed forces
• The introduction of the UT of J&K Reorganisation (Adaptation of Central Laws) Third Order, 2020, by the Ministry of Home Affairs has resulted in the repeal of at least 11 land laws in vogue in J&K earlier, including the J&K Big Landed Estates Abolition Act that had resulted in the famous ‘land to tiller’ rights. 

Source: The Hindu

3)Winter Pollution can make Covid-19 severe 

• The Indian Council of Medical Research (ICMR) said that there was a clear indication that pollution was a major contributor to COVID­-19 mortality.
• At a Health Ministry press meeting, the council also said that children who were thought to be better protected were now showing some evidence of being spreaders or even super­spreaders.
• This has been seen in Mizoram, where the number of active COVID cases is small. Children (under 17) form only a very small portion (8%) of the total active cases across India
• Speaking about Kawasaki disease occurring alongside COVID­-19 it was an autoimmune disease that affected children less than five years of age. “It is less common in India. I don’t think we have had any experience of Kawasaki with COVID­-19 in India so far. That is a very rare condition
• Advising against any hurry to declare a COVID­free status, the Health Ministry said the idea was to tackle the virus slowly and steadily. “What is a matter of concern now is the fact that States like Kerala, West Bengal, Maharashtra, Karnataka, and Delhi are not showing an improvement to the level we were expecting. 58% of new deaths are reported in five States and Union Territories [Maharashtra, West Bengal, Delhi, Chhattisgarh, and Karnataka] in the last 24 hours,
• Winter could be playing a role as is the fact that we may be becoming lax about the prevention measures. Slowing down containment strategy is also playing an important role in the pandemic
• 78% of the new recovered cases were concentrated in 10 States and Union Territories, with Maharashtra leading with more than 9,000 single­day recoveries. Additionally, 76% of the new confirmed cases were from 10 States and UTs. India’s case fatality rate (CFR) stood at 1.5%.

Source: The Hindu

4) India Post and United States Postal Service (USPS) signs Agreement for Electronic Exchange of Customs Data related to postal shipments exchanged between the two countries

• Department of Posts, Government of India (India Post), and United States Postal Service (USPS) have entered into an agreement for Electronic Exchange of Customs data related to postal shipments exchanged between the two countries. The agreement will make it possible to transmit and receive electronic data of international postal items before their physical arrival at the destination and would enable customs clearance of postal items in advance in line with the evolving global postal framework. This will also improve the performance of postal services in terms of reliability, visibility, and security.
• The USA is the top export destination for India (~17%) which is also reflected in the exchange of goods through the postal channel. In 2019, around 20% of outbound EMS and 30% of Letters & Small Packets transmitted by India Post were destined to the USA whereas 60% of the Parcels received by India Post were originated from the USA. Exchange of Electronic Advance Data (EAD) as per the Agreement will be a key driver towards promoting mutual trade with emphasis on the exports from different parts of India to the USA through postal channel considering that USA is a major destination of MSME products, Gems &Jewelry, Pharmaceuticals, and other local products from India. This will fulfill a major demand of the export industry to expedite customs clearances of export items.
• The primary objective that will be served by this agreement is to facilitate ‘ease of exports’ for small and large exporters through postal channels from different parts of the country and will contribute towards making India an Export Hub for the world.
• The agreement was signed by Mr. Prannoy Sharma, Deputy Director General (International Relations & Global Business), Department of Posts, Government of India, and Mr. Robert H. Raines Jr., Managing Director, Global Business of United States Postal Service.

Source: PIB

5) Direct Port Entry Facility

• Union Minister of State for Shipping (I/C), Shri Mansukh Mandaviya inaugurated the ‘Direct Port Entry (DPE) facility’ of V.O. Chidambaranar Port Trust by unveiling the e-plaque.
• DPE will help in increasing Ease of Doing Business for the exporters, as the facility will bring efficiency and reduce dwell time, lower tariff cost, and improve the competitiveness of shippers in international trade.
• The state-of-the-art Direct Port Entry (DPE) facility would enable direct movement of containers from factories, without intermediate handling at any CFS, thus facilitating the shippers to Gate-In their factory stuffed exports directly to the Container Terminal on a 24x7 basis. The facility is created in an area of 18,357 sqm inside the Truck Parking Terminal which was developed under the ‘Sagarmala’ for issuing customs clearance of export cargo i.e. Factory stuffed/re-sealed containers. It can handle 18000 TEUs per month. Indian Customs through the Central Warehousing Corporation, DPE facility will generate the Let Export Order (LEO) under a single roof without any hassle. A dedicated team of CWC and Customs officials, in association with VOC Port, will serve Tier-II, Tier-III (AEO) certified EXIM clients.
• Earlier, the factory stuffed (self-sealed) containers were taken to one of the container freight stations (CFSs) / Inland Container Depot (ICD) operating in Tuticorin. The CFSs operate between 10 am to 8 pm on working days only. Because of it, there was considerable delay in admitting the self-sealed export containers into the container terminals. Hence, Port developed the DPE facility to enable the export clearance of factory stuffed e-sealed containers on a 24x7 basis resulting in faster & cost-effective export admittance. Port entered into an MoU with M/S. Central Warehousing Corporation (CWC) to operate the facility for 30 years and the Customs department has also approved operating the DPE facility in the port.

Source: PIB

6) 74th Infantry Day Celebrations on 27 October 2020

• To honor the supreme sacrifice of the Infantry in fighting the Pakistani raiders in Jammu and Kashmir in 1947, the 74th Infantry Day was celebrated with traditional solemnity and gaiety following all Covid-19 precautions.
• October 27 is celebrated as Infantry Day by the Indian Army as it was on this day that an Infantry Company of the First Battalion of the Sikh Regiment was airlifted from Delhi to Srinagar to liberate Kashmir from the invading tribals who were supported by Pakistan Army. This action was ordered after Maharaja Hari Singh signed the instrument of accession, acceding Jammu and Kashmir to India.
• The tremendous contribution of Infantry in maintaining the sanctity of the nation’s borders. Infantry also popularly known as the “Queen of Battle” is the backbone of the Indian Army and its soldier bear the main brunt in any battle. Operations in 1947 bear a testament to the perseverance of the Infantrymen as it was entirely an Infantry centric operation.

Source: PIB

7) Model Code of Conduct: EC

• Recently, the Election Commission (EC) has found former Madhya Pradesh Chief Minister’s remark on a woman politician violative of the Model Code of Conduct (MCC).
• The MCC is a set of guidelines issued by the EC to regulate political parties and candidates before elections.
• It helps EC in keeping with the mandate it has been given under Article 324 of the Constitution, which gives it the power to supervise and conduct free and fair elections to the Parliament and State Legislatures.
• The MCC is operational from the date on which the election schedule is announced until the date of result announcement.

Evolution:

• The origins of the MCC lie in the Assembly elections of Kerala in 1960 when the State administration prepared a ‘Code of Conduct’ for political actors.
• Subsequently, in the Lok Sabha elections in 1962, the ECI circulated the code to all recognized political parties and State governments and it was wholeheartedly followed.
• It was in 1991 after repeated flouting of the eligibility norms and continued corruption, the EC decided to enforce the MCC more strictly.

MCC contains eight provisions dealing with:

• General Conduct: Criticism of political parties must be limited to their policies and programs, past record, and work. Activities such as using caste and communal feelings to secure votes, criticizing candidates based on unverified reports, bribing or intimidation voters, etc. are prohibited.
• Meetings: Parties must inform the local police authorities of the venue and time of any meeting in time to enable the police to make adequate security arrangements.
• Processions: If two or more candidates plan processions along the same route, organizers must establish a contact in advance to ensure that the processions do not clash. Carrying and burning effigies representing members of other political parties is not allowed.
• Polling Day: All authorized party workers at polling booths should be given suitable badges or identity cards. Identity slips supplied by them to voters shall be on plain (white) paper and shall not contain any symbol, name of the candidate, or the name of the party.
• Polling Booths: Only voters and those with a valid pass from the EC are allowed to enter polling booths.
• Observers: The EC will appoint observers to whom any candidates may report problems regarding the conduct of the election.
• Party in power: The MCC incorporated certain restrictions in 1979, regulating the conduct of the party in power.
• Ministers must not combine official visits with election work or use official machinery for the same.
• The party must avoid advertising at the cost of the public exchequer or using official mass media for publicity on achievements to improve chances of victory in the elections.
• Ministers and other authorities must not announce any financial grants, or promise any construction of roads, provision of drinking water, etc.
• Other parties must be allowed to use public spaces and rest houses and these must not be monopolized by the party in power.
• Election manifestos: Added in 2013, these guidelines prohibit parties from making promises that exert an undue influence on voters, and suggest that manifestos also indicate the means to achieve promises.

Legal Enforcement:

• Though MCC does not have any statutory backing, it has come to acquire strength in the past decade because of its strict enforcement by the EC.
• Certain provisions of the MCC may be enforced through invoking corresponding provisions in other statutes such as the Indian Penal Code 1860, Code of Criminal Procedure 1973, and Representation of the People Act 1951.
• In 2013, the Standing Committee on Personnel, Public Grievances, Law and Justice, recommended making the MCC legally binding and recommended that the MCC be made a part of the RPA 1951.
• However, the EC argues against making it legally binding.
• According to it, elections must be completed within a relatively short time or close to 45 days and judicial proceedings typically take longer, therefore it is not feasible to make it enforceable by law.

Source: Indian Express

8) Live Streaming of Court Proceedings

• Recently, the Gujarat High Court has become the first Court to live stream judicial proceedings on YouTube channel.
• The High Court allowed open court proceedings through video conferencing, except the proceedings to be conducted in camera.
• In-camera means in private chambers of a judge, with the press and public excluded.
• It observed that the initiative of the live telecast is on an experimental basis and the aspect of continuing with or adapting the modality of live court proceedings will be decided based on the outcome of this trial.
• The move has been welcomed by lawyers, law students, and the public at large besides litigants, being seen as a major measure towards transparency in judicial proceedings.

Background

• All the Courts have been functioning through video conferencing throughout the Covid-19 lockdown and even after that.
• Advocates, the parties, victims, corpses, etc. all are participating in the court proceedings during the course of the hearing through video conferencing.
• Also, in the model video conferencing rules as prescribed by the e-Committee of the Supreme Court, it has been provided that the public will be allowed to view the hearing conducted through video conferencing.
• The Supreme Court in Swapnil Tripathi v Supreme Court of India (2018) has ruled in favor of opening up the apex court through live-streaming.
• It held that the live streaming proceedings are part of the right to access justice under Article 21 of the Constitution.
• However, the judgment has remained unimplemented.
• The e-Court Mission Mode Project was conceptualized with a vision to transform the Indian Judiciary by ICT enablement of Courts.

Benefits

• A live stream would help litigants follow the proceedings in their case and also assess their lawyers’ performance. People from far-flung States such as Tamil Nadu and Kerala do not have to travel all the way to the national capital for a day’s hearing.
• It would keep a check on lawyers’ conduct inside the courtrooms. With the entire country watching them, there would be fewer interruptions, raised voices, and adjournments from the lawyers.
• Live-streaming will bring transparency and access to justice.

Issues Involved

• The live streaming of the Courts are susceptible to abuses.
• It can involve national security concerns and can amount to a violation of the fundamental right to privacy in matrimonial disputes and rape cases.
• The unauthorised reproduction of the live streaming videos is another cause for concern as its regulation will be very difficult at the government’s end.
• Concerns have also been raised about the commercial aspect of the whole issue. The agreements with broadcasters should be on a non-commercial basis. No one should profit from the arrangement.
• Infrastructure, especially internet connectivity is also the biggest challenge in implementing the live proceedings of Courts.

Source: The Hindu

9) Understanding the Black Hole

• Director, Inter-University Centre for Astronomy and Astrophysics, Pune, Somak Raychaudhury began his Nehru Science Centre, Mumbai lecture by busting some myths about Black Holes. NSC Mumbai, Ministry of Culture’s online lecture on 'The Nobel Prize 2020: Physics' – Unravelling the Mythical Black Holes by Somak Chaudhury, focussed on how the contribution of different scientists over different periods of time, right from Isaac Newton till date, have resulted in a better understanding of the black holes.
• Unlike being portrayed in many science-fiction movies, Black Holes don't move around sucking in objects like a vacuum cleaner. If the Sun turns into a black hole today, it won't suck the other planets; the earth will still be revolving around the sun as if nothing happened, except that there won't be any light and that the earth will turn very cold…but still we will be revolving.
• This year, three scientists have won the 2020 Nobel Prize in Physics for their contribution to understanding Black Holes: Roger Penrose (for the discovery that black hole formation is a robust prediction of the general theory of relativity), Andrea Ghez and Reinhard Genzel (for the discovery of a supermassive black hole at the center of our galaxy).
• In their study about black holes, both Stephen Hawking and Roger Penrose used the formalism laid down in 1955 by Amalkumar Raychaudhuri, a famous professor of physics at Ashutosh College under the University of Calcutta. His paper ‘Relativistic Cosmology Paper 1’ is about Einstein’s theory of general relativity.
• The paper says nothing about black holes, instead, it is a concept of ‘differential geometry’. Hawking used this concept to define how a spinning star with angular momentum collapses and distorts the space-time to finally end up in a singularity, and showed how singularity is quite natural and that it is not an unusual happening in the universe. This was explained by both Hawkins and Penrose in their paper, which was cited by the Nobel committee this year.
• A black hole has two basic parts: the singularity and the event horizon. The singularity is at the center and is where the mass resides. It was Stephen Hawking and R. Penrose who wrote the first paper on Singularities
• Black holes are of three types, classified based on their mass - Stellar-mass black holes, Midsize black holes, and SuperMassive black holes.
• Findings of Andrea Ghez and Reinhard Genzel have shown the supermassive black hole in the middle of our galaxy. One cannot see the black hole since no light comes from it. Hence the scientists thought of watching the stars very close to the black holes and observe their movement and believed that from their mass, the mass of the galaxy and the black holes can be measured. They have been observing the movement of stars in the galaxy for 30 years, technologies like adaptive optics helped in getting a clear image of the black holes, even when it is tough to obtain one, due to dust.
• Laser Interferometer Gravitational-Wave Observatory - India and the role of India in the findings and research of black holes. “India is part of the biggest research in the world that is working in the field of black holes. The construction of the LIGO is coming up in Hingoli district, Maharashtra. The land has been acquired for this purpose and work has already started

Laser Interferometer Gravitational-Wave Observatory - India

• Laser Interferometer Gravitational-Wave Observatory - India is a planned advanced gravitational-wave observatory to be located in India as part of the worldwide network. The LIGO-India project will be built by the Department of Atomic Energy and the Department of Science and Technology, Government of India, with a Memorandum of Understanding with the National Science Foundation (NSF), USA, along with several national and international research and academic institutions. The three institutes leading the project in India are the Inter-University Centre for Astronomy and Astrophysics in Pune, Raja Ramanna Centre for Advanced Technology in Indore, and the Institute of Plasma Research in Ahmedabad.

Source: PIB

10) In- House Procedure Against Judges of Higher Judiciary

• Recently, in a letter to the Chief Justice of India (CJI), Andhra Pradesh Chief Minister has accused the Supreme Court judge, Justice N.V. Ramana, and some judges of Andhra Pradesh (AP) High Court of misconduct, corruption, and political bias.
• The allegation against the judges is unprecedented since it has been made publicly.

Issues Involved:

• The Constitution of India protects the independence of judges of the High Courts and the Supreme Court by making them removable only through a process of impeachment. Article 121 and 211 expressly bars the Parliament and State Legislatures from discussing the misconduct of judges.
• Article 121 states that no discussions shall take place in Parliament concerning the conduct of any judge of the Supreme Court or of a High Court in the discharge of his duties except upon a motion for the removal of the judge.
• Article 211 says that no discussion shall take place in the legislature of a state concerning the conduct of any judge of the Supreme Court or of a High Court in the discharge of his duties.
• However, the AP CM has not made the allegations against the judges in the legislative assembly, and therefore, the bar under Article 211 is not attracted.
• The chief minister of a state can make such allegations by circumventing the bar under Article 211, as the constitution does not envisage such a possibility.
• However, generally, such allegations against judges are not made public, since it may cast aspersion on the credibility of the judiciary.
• Since AP CM has made the allegations publicly, such an act may invite action for contempt of court.

Action in Cases of Misconduct of Judges:

• A judge can be removed from office on grounds of ‘proved misbehavior or incapacity’.
• However, not all forms of misbehavior will warrant removal. There could be other kinds of impropriety too.
• There are times when serious complaints of misconduct are made and CJI is called upon to examine them. Since 1997, judges have adopted an ‘in-house procedure’ for inquiring into such charges.

In-House Procedure:

• Under the in-house procedure, when a complaint is received against a High Court judge, the CJI should decide if the issue is frivolous or serious.
• If a deeper probe is considered necessary, both the complaint and the judge’s response, along with the High Court’s Chief Justice’s comments, are recorded for further action.
• If deemed necessary, CJI can also form a three-member committee to hold an inquiry into the matter.
• The committee should have two Chief Justices from other High Courts and one High Court judge.
• The inquiry it holds is of the nature of a fact-finding mission and is not a formal judicial inquiry involving the examination of witnesses. The judge concerned is entitled to appear before it.

The outcome of the In-House Procedure:

• If the committee finds substance in the charges, it can give two kinds of recommendations. One, that the misconduct is serious enough to require removal from office, or that it is not serious enough to warrant removal.
• If the misconduct involves the removal of a judge, the judge concerned will be urged to resign or seek voluntary retirement.
• If the judge is unwilling to quit, the Chief Justice of the High Court concerned would be asked to withdraw judicial work from him.
• The President and the Prime Minister will be informed of the situation, clearing the way for Parliament to begin the process of removal.
• If the misconduct does not warrant removal, the judge would be advised accordingly.

Procedure in Case of Chief Justice of High Court/ Judge of Supreme Court:

• If the case is against a High Court’s Chief Justice, the same procedure is followed like that of a judge of the High Court, but the probe committee comprises a Supreme Court judge and two Chief Justices.
• If a Supreme Court judge faces such a charge, the in-house panel will comprise three Supreme Court judges.
• Also, the in-house procedure does not give any separate provision to deal with complaints against the Chief Justice of India.

Source: The Hindu

11) Sudan and Israel to Normalise Relations

• Recently, in a deal brokered by the USA, Sudan and Israel have agreed to normalise relations to end decades of hostility.
• Sudan, which was technically at war with Israel since its foundation in 1948, has now become the third country to forge diplomatic relations with it, in recent times.
• Earlier, the USA brokered diplomatic pacts between Israel and the UAE and Bahrain as well, to normalize their relations.

Implications:

• The deal would deepen Sudan’s engagement with the West.
• The deal follows the USA’s conditional agreement to remove Sudan from its blacklist of countries accused of sponsoring terrorism.
• Sudan was added to the list in 1993 after it was accused of harboring groups such as Hezbollah and Palestinian militant outfits which the USA deems as terrorists.
• As a result, Sudan was cut off from the global economy and was starved of foreign investment which faced another blow in 2011 when South Sudan was formed taking away its major oil resources.
• With its name removed from the list, Sudan will no longer stay deprived of foreign investments.
• Under the deal, Sudan has agreed to pay USD 335 million in compensation to victims of the Al-Qaeda bombings of USA embassies in Kenya and Tanzania in 1998.
• It delivers a foreign policy achievement for Trump just days before the USA election.
• It boasts Israel’s motive which has made it a priority to forge ties with formerly hostile countries in Africa and the Arab world in the absence of any progress with the Palestinians.
• In the initial phase, there will be no exchange of ambassadors or a mutual establishment of embassies.
• After the six-day war of 1967 war, Arab powers met in Khartoum (Sudan’s capital) to pledge three “noes” viz. no peace with Israel, no recognition of Israel, and no negotiations with Israel. Therefore, the deal holds a symbolic significance for Israel.
• Unlike the UAE and Bahrain, which have never fought with Israel, Sudan sent forces to fight in the war around Israel’s creation in 1948 and during the war of 1967. In the 1970s, Israel backed Sudanese insurgents fighting the Khartoum government.
• With this agreement, Israel will complete the creation of a safety cordon in the Red Sea, which currently includes Egypt, Jordan, South Sudan, and Saudi Arabia.
• The deal is also aimed at unifying Arab countries against their common adversary, Iran.
• Though Sudan has been largely marginal to Middle Eastern politics in recent decades, the normalization has significant symbolic value.

Global Reaction:

• Allies of the USA, including Germany, Egypt, the UAE, Bahrain, have welcomed the deal as a boost to stability in West Asia.
• Meanwhile, Palestinian leaders have strongly condemned the deal, echoing their rejection of all of Israel’s normalization accords.

Source: The Hindu