In the executive branch, the head of government is the highest or the 2nd-highest official of a sovereign state, a federated state, an autonomous region, a dependent territory, a self-governing colony, or other government who often presides over a cabinet, a group of ministers or secretaries who lead executive departments.
In diplomacy, "head of government" is differentiated from "head of state".
An indirect election or hierarchical voting, is an election in which voters do not choose directly among candidates or parties for an office, but elect people who in turn choose candidates or parties. This electoral system is one of the oldest forms of elections and is used by many countries for heads of state (such as presidents), heads of government (such as prime ministers), and/or upper houses. It is also used for some supranational legislatures. The body that controls the federal executive branch (such as a cabinet) is in many countries elected indirectly by the head of government with exception of the directorial system. Upper houses, especially in federal republics, are often indirectly elected, either by the corresponding lower house or cabinet.
Positions that are indirectly elected may be chosen by a permanent body (such as a parliament) or by a special body convened solely for that purpose (such as an electoral college). An election can be partially indirect, for example in the case of indirect single transferable voting, where only eliminated candidates select other candidates to transfer their vote share to. Similarly, supranational legislatures can be indirectly elected by constituent countries' legislatures or executive governments.
Asia-Pacific Economic Cooperation (APEC /ËeÉŞpÉk/ AY-pek) is an inter-governmental forum for 21 member economies in the Pacific Rim that promotes free trade throughout the Asia-Pacific region. Following the success of ASEAN's series of post-ministerial conferences launched in the mid-1980s, APEC started in 1989, in response to the growing interdependence of Asia-Pacific economies and the advent of regional trade blocs in other parts of the world; it aimed to establish new markets for agricultural products and raw materials beyond Europe. Headquartered in Singapore, APEC is recognized as one of the highest-level multilateral blocs and oldest forums in the Asia-Pacific / Americas region, and exerts significant global influence.
The heads of government of all APEC members except Taiwan (which is represented by a ministerial-level official as economic leader) attend an annual APEC Economic Leaders' Meeting. The location of the meeting rotates annually among the member economies, and a famous tradition, followed for most (but not all) summits, involves the attending leaders dressing in a national costume of the host country. APEC has three official observers: the Association of Southeast Asian Nations Secretariat, the Pacific Economic Cooperation Council and the Pacific Islands Forum Secretariat. APEC's Host Economy of the Year is considered to be invited in the first place for geographical representation to attend G20 meetings following G20 guidelines.
The 2009 StrasbourgâKehl Summit was the NATO summit of heads of state and heads of government held in Strasbourg, France, and in Kehl and Baden-Baden, Germany, on 3â4 April 2009. The summit marked the 60th anniversary of the establishment of North Atlantic Treaty Organization (NATO). Primarily a celebratory 60th-anniversary event, the agenda included a number of urgent topics commanding the NATO leaders' attention.
The Republic of China (Taiwan) joined the Asia-Pacific Economic Cooperation (APEC) in 1991 together with People's Republic of China and British Hong Kong.
The heads of government of all APEC member economies meet annually in a summit called the "APEC Economic Leaders' Meeting", rotating in location among APEC's member economies. However, owing to the nature of the Economic Forum of APEC and the One China policy, the president of the Republic of China is not allowed to appear in APEC and thus appoints a special envoy every year to attend the APEC meeting under the name Chinese Taipei.
The following is a list of presidents of the Russian Soviet Federative Socialist Republic (Russian SFSR). It lists heads of state, heads of government, and heads of the local branch of the Communist Party of the Soviet Union. Commonly referred to as Soviet Russia or simply Russia, the Russian SFSR was a sovereign state in 1917â1922, the largest, most populous, and most economically developed republic of the Soviet Union in 1922â1991, having its own legislation within the Union in 1990â91.
The Special Relationship is a term that is often used to describe the political, social, diplomatic, cultural, economic, legal, environmental, religious, military and historic relations between the United Kingdom and the United States or its political leaders. The term first came into popular usage after it was used in a 1946 speech by former British prime minister Winston Churchill. Both nations have been close allies during many conflicts in the 20th and the 21st centuries, including World War I, World War II, the Cold War, and the war on terror.
Although both governments also have close relationships with many other nations, the level of cooperation between the UK and the US in trade and commerce, military planning, execution of military operations, nuclear weapons technology, and intelligence sharing has been described as "unparalleled" among major world powers. The close relationships between British and American heads of government, including that between Margaret Thatcher and Ronald Reagan and later between Tony Blair and both Bill Clinton and George W. Bush have been cited as examples of the special relationship. At the diplomatic level, characteristics include recurring public representations of the relationship as "special", frequent and high-profile political visits and extensive information exchange at the diplomatic working level.