The United Arab Emirates

♦ The United Arab Emirates announced its exit from the Organisation of Petroleum Exporting Countries (OPEC) and the broader OPEC+ alliance on 28 April 2026, set to come into effect on May 1. The UAE said its decision would help it meet growing global energy demand in the long term after recent investments to boost its production capacity.

♦ As OPEC's third-largest producer, the UAE's departure has considerably weakened the cartel, and freed Abu Dhabi from serving as its shock absorber for mandated oil cuts. With capacity of 4.85 million barrels per day but a quota capping it at 3.2 million (12% of OPEC output), it had long borne the cost of underutilised investment. Where Saudi Arabia, the de-facto leader, seeks higher prices, the UAE wants higher output. India is indirectly affected: OPEC cuts also apply to Lower Zakum, in which Indian companies hold a 10% stake.

♦ Opec was formed in 1960 by five countries - Iran, Iraq, Kuwait, Saudi Arabia and Venezuela - to defend the interests of major oil exporters by coordinating production to ensure steady revenue for its members. The number of countries in the cartel has fluctuated over the years. In addition to the five founding members it also includes Algeria, Equatorial Guinea, Gabon, Libya, Nigeria and the Republic of the Congo.

♦ The UAE joined in 1967, and its departure will leave the cartel with 11 members. There are an additional 10 non-Opec members in the wider Opec+ alliance.

Pakistan

♦ Pakistan successfully launched an indigenous electro-optical satellite called PRSC-EO3 from China’s Taiyuan Satellite Launch Centre on 25 April 2026.  This marks the third electro-optical satellite launched by Pakistan. EO-2 was deployed in February 2026, following the launch of EO-1 in January 2025. The agency had earlier expanded its capabilities with the launch of its first hyperspectral satellite, HS-1, in October 2025.

♦ An electro-optical (EO) satellite is a type of Earth observation system that captures high-resolution images using sensors that can detect visible, near-infrared, and ultraviolet light. Like a camera in space, it records reflected sunlight to generate detailed imagery that can differentiate between materials, vegetation, and built infrastructure. These satellites are widely used for applications such as reconnaissance, disaster response, and urban planning.

Turkish

♦ Turkish lawmakers passed a Bill that includes restricting access to social media platforms for children under the age of 15. The legislation is the latest in a global trend to protect young people from dangerous online activity, following in the footsteps of Australia, which introduced landmark restrictions on social media use last year (2025).

♦ The bill’s adoption in Turkiye comes a week after a 14-year-old boy killed nine students and a teacher in a gun attack at a middle school in Kahramanmaras in southern Turkiye.

♦ The bill would force social media platforms to install age‑verification systems, provide parental control tools and require companies to rapidly respond to content deemed harmful.

♦ President Recep Tayyip Erdogan now has 15 days to approve the bill for it to become law. 

France has lifted the airport transit visa

♦ France has lifted the airport transit visa requirement for Indian nationals with effect from April 10, the French Embassy in India announced on 23 April 2026. Indian nationals holding ordinary passports are no longer required to obtain an airport transit visa when passing through the international zone of airports located on French territory during a layover en route to a third country.

♦ The change follows a decree amending the 2010 regulations on documents and visas required for the entry of foreigners into French territory.

♦ The measure applies to Indian nationals transiting through mainland France exclusively by air, remaining in the international airport zone without entering French territory. President Macron had announced during his visit to India in February 2026 that measures would be taken to ease travel for Indian nationals via France.

SAARC Currency Swap Framework

♦ India has approved withdrawal of Rs.30 billion for the Maldives under the SAARC Currency Swap Framework, the Indian High Commission in Male said on 23 April 2026. The drawdown comes on the same day that Maldives settled a $400 million swap facility availed in October 2024 under the US Dollar/Euro Swap Window of the bilateral agreement between the Reserve Bank of India and the Maldives Monetary Authority. The settlement reflects the Maldives government’s commitment to meeting its financial obligations, the Maldives Foreign Ministry said.

♦ The Rs 30 billion facility has been released under the INR Swap Window of the ‘Framework on Currency Swap Arrangement for SAARC Countries, 2024-2027’.

♦ The agreement was signed between the RBI and the MMA during President Mohamed Muizzu’s state visit to New Delhi in October 2024.

♦ Since the inception of the SAARC Swap Framework in 2012, the RBI has extended aggregate swap support worth $1.1 billion to the Maldives. The Indian High Commission noted that the currency swap arrangement has become an important element in ensuring financial stability for the Maldives, particularly during periods of external economic pressure.

Britain

♦ Children in Britain who are 17 or younger, ‌and anyone born in the future, will never be able to legally buy cigarettes after lawmakers approved new stricter restrictions on smoking. The Tobacco and Vapes Bill raises the legal age for buying tobacco by one ​year, every year, starting with people born on or after January 1, 2009, meaning ​affected age groups face a lifetime ban.

♦ The government says the measures will help reduce smoking and prevent young people from becoming addicted to nicotine, easing long-term pressure on the National Health Service.

♦ Smoking causes about 64,000 deaths and 400,000 hospital admissions a year in England, according to official estimates, and costs the NHS around 3 billion pounds ($4 billion) annually, with wider economic costs exceeding 20 billion pounds.

India and Austria

♦ India and Austria on 17 April 2026 strengthened their economic engagement at the India–Austria Business Forum held in New Delhi, with both sides launching a bilateral Fast-Track Mechanism (FTM) to facilitate investments and deepen trade cooperation. The forum, held at Vanijya Bhawan, coincided with the visit of Austrian Federal Chancellor Christian Stocker, marking the first such visit by an Austrian Chancellor to India in over four decades. Austria’s Federal Minister for Economy, Energy and Tourism Wolfgang Hattmannsdorfer and India’s Commerce and Industry Minister Piyush Goyal led the respective sides, alongside senior officials and industry leaders.

♦ A key outcome of the forum was the operationalisation of the Fast-Track Mechanism, designed as a dedicated platform to support Austrian and Indian investors. The mechanism will help address investment-related issues, ensure timely resolution of concerns, and improve the ease of doing business in both countries.

♦ The discussions focused on expanding bilateral trade and leveraging complementarities in industrial capabilities, technology and innovation ecosystems. Both sides identified sustainable development, advanced manufacturing and green technologies as priority areas for future collaboration.

GE Aerospace and Indias Hindustan Aeronautics Ltd

♦ GE Aerospace and India's Hindustan Aeronautics Ltd. have agreed upon technical specifications to co-produce fighter-jet engines, moving one step closer to a deal that would shift high-end US military technology to India. GE and HAL “reached an agreement on technical matters” for the production of F414 engines, according to a joint statement issued on 26 April 2026. The pact, under negotiation for three years, includes the transfer of manufacturing expertise to India and will be followed by a final contract.

♦ India intends to use the F414 turbines to power 120 to 130 next-generation, indigenously developed fighter jets.

Bacille Calmette-Guerin (BCG)

♦ India on 14 April 2026 announced that it has supplied 13 tonnes of Bacille Calmette-Guerin (BCG) vaccines along with related dry materials to Afghanistan, aimed at strengthening the country’s child immunisation programme against tuberculosis. The consignment was delivered to Afghanistan’s Ministry of Public Health.

♦ India has continued to extend humanitarian assistance to Afghanistan, including medical supplies and relief materials, as part of its broader outreach to the Afghan people.

♦ Earlier, on April 5, India had dispatched humanitarian aid to support regions affected by recent floods and an earthquake. The assistance included kitchen sets, hygiene kits, tarpaulins, plastic sheets and sleeping bags.

♦ According to Afghanistan’s National Disaster Management Authority, heavy rains and flooding recently destroyed 131 houses and partially damaged 650 more, while over 3,000 jeribs of agricultural land were affected.

Lieutenant General Susan Coyle

♦ Lieutenant General Susan Coyle was appointed as Australia Army Chief. She will take charge in July. Coyle will become the first woman to lead the Army in its 125-year history. She will replace Lieutenant General Simon Stuart, who assumed the post in July 2022.

♦ Coyle is ​the current chief of joint capabilities. 

♦ Her appointment comes as the Australian military seeks to boost the number of female officers in its ranks. Women currently make up about 21 percent of the Australian defence forces, or ADF, and 18.5 percent of senior leadership roles. The ADF has set a target of 25 percent of overall participation for women by 2030.

India-Uzbekistan

♦ The 7th edition of the India-Uzbekistan joint military exercise ‘DUSTLIK’ is currently underway in Uzbekistan. The 14-day exercise, being held from April 12 to 25, is taking place at the Gurumsaray Field Training Area in Namangan. It is an annual event conducted alternately in India and Uzbekistan, with the previous edition held in Aundh, Pune, in April 2025.

♦ The Indian contingent comprises 60 personnel, including 45 from the Indian Army, largely from a battalion of the Mahar Regiment, and 15 from the Indian Air Force. The Uzbekistan side is also represented by around 60 personnel from its Army and Air Force.

♦ The exercise aims to strengthen military cooperation and enhance the ability of both sides to conduct joint operations in semi-mountainous terrain. It focuses on physical fitness, joint planning, tactical drills and basic special arms skills.

♦ The joint drills are also expected to promote camaraderie between personnel of the two countries and further strengthen defence cooperation and bilateral ties between India and Uzbekistan.

Nizar Mohammed Saeed Amidi

Nizar Mohammed Saeed Amidi was elected as the President of the Republic of Iraq by Iraqi parliament on 11 April 2026. He is a senior leader in the Patriotic Union of Kurdistan (PUK), one of Iraq’s two main Kurdish parties.  Amidi won 227 votes in the final round. His closest rival, Muthanna Amin Nader, managed only 15 votes, while seven ballots were declared invalid.

Pranay Verma

♦ Pranay Verma was appointed as the next Ambassador of India to the Kingdom of Belgium and the European Union. Presently  he is the High Commissioner of India to the People's Republic of Bangladesh. Verma, a 1994-batch Indian Foreign Service (IFS) officer, had assumed charge as the high commissioner to Dhaka on September 21, 2022.

♦ Before arriving in Dhaka, Verma served as the ambassador of India to Vietnam since July 2019.

♦ Earlier, he held the position of joint secretary of the East Asia Division at the MEA’s headquarters in New Delhi from June 2017 to July 2019; and of joint secretary for external relations at the Department of Atomic Energy in Mumbai from October 2014 to June 2017.

To Lam

♦ Vietnam’s lawmakers unanimously elected Communist Party general secretary To Lam as President for a five-year term, consolidating his control over both the party and the state.

♦ The move departs from Vietnam's tradition of shared leadership, in which the jobs have typically been held by different people, and echoes power structures in China under Xi Jinping and neighbouring Laos.

♦ This is Lam's second time holding both jobs, after briefly doing so in 2024 when his predecessor as party chief, Nguyen Phu Trong, died.

Shikshapatri

♦ The University of Oxford’s Bodleian Libraries has launched a historic U.K.-wide tour of Shikshapatri, one of the world’s most significant and rare Hindu scriptures, to mark its 200th anniversary.

♦ The sacred manuscript began its bicentenary journey earlier this year to travel to major temples around the country in collaboration with leaders of the Swaminarayan faith to offer an expected 20,000-30,000 people a rare opportunity to view the sacred text.

♦ Composed in Vadtal in Gujarat in 1826 by Sahajananda Swami — Lord Swaminarayan, the Shikshapatri — or “a letter of teachings” — is devised as a guide to ethical and spiritual living.

♦ The Bodleian Libraries at the University of Oxford are the largest university library system in the U.K., including the principal Bodleian Library as a legal deposit for 400 years as well as 23 libraries across Oxford.

♦ Together, the libraries hold more than 14 million printed items from around the world, over 80,000 e-journals and outstanding special collections, including rare books and manuscripts, classical papyri, maps, music, art, and printed ephemera.

Uchral Nyam-Osor

♦ Uchral Nyam-Osor was elected Mongolia’s new prime minister, becoming the country’s third leader in nine months as political instability and economic pressures intensify.

♦ Parliament confirmed him with a strong majority, elevating a reform-minded compromise candidate after weeks of deadlock that forced his predecessor to resign. 

♦ Uchral previously served as parliament speaker and led the ruling party.  

♦ The outgoing prime minister, Zandanshatar Gombojav, stepped down amid pressure linked to corruption allegations involving a senior minister, paving the way for Uchral’s selection as a unifying figure acceptable to rival camps aligned with the president and former leadership.

Aung Hlaing

♦ Myanmar junta chief Min Aung Hlaing was elected president of country after winning a parliamentary vote on 3 April 2026.

♦ He has led Myanmar’s armed forces since 2011, seized power in 2021 by overthrowing the civilian government of Aung San Suu Kyi, placing her under arrest and triggering nationwide protests that later evolved into an armed resistance movement.

♦ His transition to the presidency came alongside a reshuffle in military leadership. Earlier this week, Min Aung Hlaing nominated Ye Win Oo, a former intelligence chief considered a close ally, as his successor to lead the armed forces.