Spring meetings of IMF & World Bank to begin in Washington

The spring meetings of the International Monetary Fund and the World Bank will begin in Washington on Wednesday with twin objectives of help countries to combat climate change, and assist the most indebted nations. The events will start with the IMF’s publication of its updated World Economic Outlook. The meetings will bring central bankers together with finance and development ministers, academics, and representatives from the private sector and civil society to discuss the state of the global economy. This year marks the 80th anniversary of both institutions. They were born of the Bretton Woods conference, held in 1944 as allied nations sought to regulate the international financial order after World War II, which was then still raging. World Bank head Ajay Banga during a recent live streamed press conference said that there is the climate crisis, debt, food insecurity, pandemics and fragility. He said, there is clearly a need to accelerate access to clean air, water and energy. Spring meetings of IMF & World Bank to begin in Washington
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Japan PM to visit Washington today

Japanese Prime Minister Fumio Kishida begins a much-anticipated visit to Washington today aiming to spotlight shared concerns about provocative Chinese military action in the Pacific. PM Kishida and his wife will stop by the White House tonight ahead of tomorrow’s official visit and formal state dinner as President Joe Biden looks to celebrate a decades-long ally he sees as the cornerstone of his Indo-Pacific policy. Kishida will be the fifth world leader honoured by Biden with a state dinner since he took office in 2021. Biden and Kishida on tomorrow will hold talks and take part in a joint news conference before Biden fetes the Japanese leader with the state dinner in the East Room. The prime minister has also been invited to address a joint meeting of Congress on Thursday. He will be just the second Japanese leader to address the body; Shinzo Abe gave a speech to Congress in 2015.Japan PM to visit Washington today
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'Rust' armourer found guilty over deadly on-set shooting

NEW MEXICO - The armourer who loaded the gun that killed a cinematographer on the set of the Alec Baldwin movie "Rust" was convicted of involuntary manslaughter. A jury in New Mexico took just over two hours to find Hannah Gutierrez guilty for the death of Halyna Hutchins in October 2021 during filming of the budget Western. A 10-day trial heard how Gutierrez had been ultimately responsible for the use of live rounds on set -- a red line across the industry. The court had also heard how she had repeatedly failed to adhere to basic safety rules, leaving guns unattended, and allowing actors -- including Baldwin -- to wave weapons around. "This is not a case where Hannah Gutierrez made one mistake and that one mistake was accidentally putting a live round into that gun," prosecutor Kari Morrissey told the jury in her closing argument Wednesday. "This case is about constant, never-ending safety failures that resulted in the death of a human being and nearly killed another." Hutchins was hit by a live round fired from the Colt .45 that Baldwin was holding for a scene inside a wooden church on the New Mexico set. Director Joel Souza was wounded by the same bullet. Baldwin has repeatedly denied responsibility, insisting he did not pull the trigger. Ballistics experts have dismissed the claim, saying the gun could not have discharged any other way. His own involuntary manslaughter trial is expected in July. The tragedy sent shockwaves through Hollywood and led to calls for a complete ban on the use of weapons on movie sets. Industry insiders, however, insisted that rules were already in place to prevent such incidents, and that those working on "Rust" had not followed them. 'Rust' armourer found guilty over deadly on-set shooting
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