International Current Affairs

Sri Lanka is the country that cut its army by half after a financial crisis. The country has been facing a severe economic crisis since late 2021, which has led to shortages of food, fuel, and other essential goods. In an effort to save money, the government announced in January 2023 that it would be reducing the size of its military by half. This would mean that the country’s army would be reduced from 200,000 to 100,000 soldiers.

‘Wagner Private Military Company’), is a Russian paramilitary organization. It is variously described as a private military company (PMC), a network of mercenaries, or a de facto private army of Russian President Vladimir Putin.

According to the Henley Passport Index 2023, the worst passport in the world is the Afghan passport. Afghan passport holders can only travel visa-free to 27 destinations. The Afghan passport has been ranked as the worst passport in the world for several years in a row. This is due to the country’s political instability and security concerns.

The UN agency, Food and Agricultural Organisation (FAO) has published its latest Food Price Index (FFPI) which tracks the monthly international prices of cereals, vegetable oil, dairy, meat and sugar. The FFPI averaged to 132.4 points in December, which is one per cent lower than the previous December.   The FFPI was notably higher in 2022 than in 2021.

The 2022 FIFA World Cup final was the final match of the 2022 FIFA World Cup, the 22nd edition of FIFA’s competition for men’s national football teams. The match was played at Lusail Stadium in Lusail, Qatar, on 18 December 2022, the country’s National Day, and was contested by Argentina and 2018 champions France. Argentina won the ensuing penalty shoot-out 4–2 to earn their third World Cup, and first since 1986. Argentina became the second team after Spain in 2010 to win the World Cup after losing their opening game.

This is a record of Argentina’s results at the FIFA World Cup. Argentina is one of the most successful teams in the tournament’s history, having won three World Cups: in 1978, 1986 and 2022. Argentina has also been runner up three times: in 1930, 1990 and 2014. In 18 World Cup tournaments, Argentina has 47 victories in 88 matches.

Time magazine named President Volodymyr Zelensky as well as `the spirit of Ukraine` as its 2022 person of the year on December 7, 2022, for the resistance the country has shown in the face of Russia`s invasion.

Dr Hamid Choi Yong became the first Korean Muslim to translate the Holy Quran and Sahih Al-Bukhari into the Korean Language. The translation took about 7 years to complete.