Australia's new Prime Minister unveils cabinet lineupJuly 1, 2013 - 10:28 AMT PanARMENIAN.Net - Australia's new prime minister, Kevin Rudd, has unveiled his cabinet, five days after ousting Julia Gillard as Labor Party leader, BBC News reported. The cabinet contains a record number of women and many Rudd backers, who replace Gillard loyalists who stepped down after the leadership change. The foreign affairs, defence and home affairs ministers remained unchanged. The new cabinet was sworn in on Monday, July 1 and was to hold its first meeting shortly afterwards. Several of Gillard's ministers resigned after last week's leadership vote, including Treasurer Wayne Swan and Trade Minister Craig Emerson. They have been replaced by Chris Bowen and Richard Marles respectively. Bill Shorten, the key power-broker who switched his backing to Rudd shortly before last week's vote, was given the education portfolio. Deputy Prime Minister Anthony Albanese will also take on the communications portfolio, making him responsible for the high-profile National Broadband Network roll-out. Defence Minister Stephen Smith says he will resign after the next election but will remain in his post until then. Top stories Azerbaijani President Ilham Aliyev arrived in Moscow on April 22 to hold talks with Russian counterpart Vladimir Putin. Authorities said a total of 192 Azerbaijani troops were killed and 511 were wounded during Azerbaijan’s offensive. In 2023, the Azerbaijani government will increase the country’s defense budget by more than 1.1 billion manats ($650 million). The bill, published on Monday, is designed to "eliminate the shortcomings of an unreasonably broad interpretation of the key concept of "compatriot". Partner news | Concept to complete Yerevan Cascade discussed at city hall A conceptual proposal to complete the Cascade complex in downtown Yerevan has been presented by Jean-Michel Wilmotte. Pashinyan visits flood-hit region Armenian Prime Minister Nikol Pashinyan on Saturday, June 8 visited the disaster area in the Lori province. €3.5 mln EU grant to support justice reforms in Armenia The European Union has paid €3.5 mln grant to Armenia within a €11mln program on Support to Justice Reforms. Yerevan reacts to Baku’s proposal to see Minsk Group abolition Alen Simonyan has declared that Armenia is taking steps aimed at concluding a peace treaty with Azerbaijan. |