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June
Japan to donate additional $800 mln, vaccines to WHO's COVAX body - media
Written by Nur Yasmin
Japanese Prime Minister Yoshihide Suga is planning to pledge an additional $800 million to the World Health Organisation's COVAX programme, which provides COVID-19 vaccines to countries in need, the Mainichi newspaper reported on Wednesday.
Japan has already pledged $200 million to COVAX, and the country is expected to announce donations of vaccine doses to the programme, the newspaper said without citing a source.
Suga will serve as host for an online COVAX summit on Wednesday, which will also be attended by United States Vice President Kamala Harris, philanthropist Bill Gates, and representatives from Group of Seven nations.
The summit is intended to fill a $1.7 billion funding gap, and it is hoped that countries and organisations will boost their pledges of money and vaccine doses, a Japanese government official told reporters on Tuesday.
Japanese lawmakers have urged giving supplies of AstraZeneca Plc's (AZN.L) vaccine to Taiwan, which is dealing with a spike in domestic infections and has vaccinated less than 2% of its 23.5 million population. Japan has no immediate plans to use the AstraZeneca doses it has on hand and has secured enough supplies of other types of vaccine for its entire population. (Reuters)
June
EU agrees to add Japan to safe travel list, holds off on Britain
Written by Nur Yasmin
European Union governments agreed on Wednesday to add Japan to their small list of countries from which they will allow non-essential travel, while holding off until at least mid-June for British tourists, EU sources said on Tuesday.
Ambassadors from the EU's 27 countries approved the addition of Japan at a meeting on Wednesday, with the change to take effect in the coming days.
EU countries are recommended gradually to lift travel restrictions for the current seven countries on the list - Australia, Israel, New Zealand, Rwanda, Singapore, South Korea and Thailand.
Individual EU countries can still opt to demand a negative COVID-19 test or a period of quarantine.
The EU last month eased criteria for adding new countries to the list, by changing to 75 from 25 the maximum number of new COVID-19 cases per 100,000 people in the previous 14 days.
Britain met that revised target but was left off the list because of an increase in COVID-19 cases arising from an infectious coronavirus variant first identified in India.
Britain recorded no COVID-19 deaths on Tuesday, for the first time since March 2020, but cases of the Indian variant doubled last week and the government has said it is too early to say whether Britain can fully drop restrictions on June 21.
EU diplomats said Britain could be added to the list, depending on the course of the variant, in mid-June, when a larger group of countries are expected to be considered.
The list is designed to eliminate inconsistency of travel restrictions across the bloc.
France and Germany have imposed quarantines on UK visitors and Austria banned British tourists, while Portugal and Spain now welcome them.
Meanwhile, Britain advises against travel to all EU countries except Portugal and only exempts people coming from Portugal from a requirement to quarantine. (Reuters)
May
Australia And New Zealand Unite Over China Human Rights Issues
Written by Nur Yasmin
Australia and New Zealand on Monday expressed grave concerns over developments in Hong Kong and the human rights situation in the Xinjiang region of China, as the two nations sought to get in lockstep over their biggest trading partner.
In the first face-to-face meeting between heads of both countries in over 15 months, Australia and New Zealand presented a united front on China.
Quarantine-free travel between Australia and New Zealand began last month after both nations controlled the spread of COVID-19, allowing Australian Prime Minister Scott Morrison to visit New Zealand.
Talks were focused among other things on China, with Australia currently at loggerheads with Beijing, while New Zealand has strengthened economic ties and upgraded a free trade agreement this year with China.
New Zealand's approach to China has to lead to suggestions by political commentators and the media that Wellington may not be taking a strong enough stance on China's human rights issues.
Ardern rejected this, saying New Zealand and Australia had similar positions on issues such as trade and human rights.
"You'll see Australia and New Zealand have broadly been positioned in exactly the same place on these issues consistently so I really push back on any suggestion that we are not taking a strong stance on these incredibly important issues," she said in a joint press conference.
Morrison backed Ardern, saying Australia and New Zealand were trading nations, but neither would ever trade away its sovereignty.
"I think as great partners, friends, allies and indeed family, there will be those far from here who would seek to divide us and they will not succeed," he said.
In a joint statement both prime ministers expressed grave concerns over developments in Hong Kong and the human rights situation in the Xinjiang region of China, calling on Beijing to respect the human rights of the Uyghur people and other Muslim minorities and to grant the United Nations and other independent observers unfettered access to the region.
China's foreign ministry spokesman, Wang Wenbin, on Monday said Beijing rejects the statement from Ardern and Morrison.
"The leaders of Australia and New Zealand ... made irresponsible remarks, severely violated international law and basic norms of international relations, and grossly interfered in China's internal affairs," said Wang at a regular briefing.
Activists and U.N. rights experts say at least a million Muslims have been detained in camps in Xinjiang. The activists and some Western politicians accuse China of using torture, forced labor, and sterilization.
China initially denied detention camps existed, but has since said they are vocational centers designed to combat extremism. In late 2019, China said all people in the camps had “graduated”.
In Hong Kong, Beijing has clamped down on political protest, introducing a new security law in 2020 that criminalizes what it considers subversion, secessionism, terrorism, or collusion with foreign forces.
Australia's ties with China have deteriorated since Australia led to support for an independent inquiry into the origin of the COVID-19 pandemic.
China has in recent months moved to restrict imports of Australian products such as barley, wine, and beef, with the World Trade Organisation saying last week it would establish a dispute settlement panel to resolve the barley row.
Ahead of Morrison's visit, New Zealand said it would back Canberra in the spat. (Reuters)
May
Southeast Asia's Coronavirus Surge Prompts Shutdowns And Alarm
Written by Nur Yasmin
A sharp rise in coronavirus cases from new variants in parts of Southeast Asia that had been less affected by the pandemic has prompted new restrictions, factory closures, and attempts to rapidly scale up vaccination programs across the region.
The number of daily new COVID-19 cases in Malaysia has soared past India's on a per capita basis, while total cases in Thailand, Vietnam, Cambodia, Laos, and East Timor have all more than doubled in the past month.
Thailand, which was the second country to record infections after China, had won plaudits for containing its first wave of cases, but its death toll has risen ten-fold over two months - though at just over 1,000 is still low by global standards.
Adding to concerns, Vietnamese officials revealed the discovery over the weekend of a "very dangerous" combination of Indian and UK COVID-19 variants, which spreads quickly by air.
"COVID-19 infection rates are very alarming in countries across Southeast Asia," Alexander Matheou, Asia Pacific Director, International Federation of Red Cross and Red Crescent Societies, told Reuters. "The more dangerous and deadly variants highlight the urgent need for much faster global sharing and manufacture of vaccines to contain this outbreak and to help avoid huge mass casualties."
In the absence of vaccines, containment is the priority.
Vietnam crushed earlier waves - and the country of 98 million has still suffered fewer than 50 deaths - but new distancing measures started in its business hub Ho Chin Minh City on Monday.
In the north of the country, factories supplying global tech firms such as Apple and Samsung are operating below capacity because of outbreaks, industry sources said.
Thailand's largest agribusiness, Charoen Pokphand Foods Pcl closed a poultry factory for five days after workers tested positive for COVID-19. Thousands of more cases have been found at factories, construction sites, and prisons.
As Malaysia ordered a "total lockdown" from Tuesday to stem the spread, officials said some factories could keep operating at reduced capacity.
SLOW VACCINATION
Malaysia has tried to step up its vaccination campaign, but fewer than 6% of people have received at least one dose of a vaccine - barely half the proportion in India.
Some Southeast Asian countries had placed less emphasis on vaccine procurement than Western countries or simply could not afford them and now have limited access.
"With a smaller segment of the population that is protected from vaccination, the vast majority of the population remains susceptible," said Teo Yik Ying, dean of the Saw Swee Hock School of Public Health at the National University of Singapore.
"The healthcare systems in several Southeast Asian countries are either at risk of being or already have been completely overwhelmed."
Only the wealthy city-state of Singapore has comparable vaccination rates to Western countries with over 36% getting at least one injection, but the appearance of cases from new variants there has also prompted new closures this month.
Prime Minister Lee Hsien Loong was due to outline a strategy for opening up the country, whose economy depends on its place as a regional business and transport hub.
"The solution: testing, contact tracing, and vaccinating, all faster, and more," Lee said.
Health officials are also watching closely for any resurgence in Indonesia and the Philippines, the region's two most populous countries, which were both hit hard by the pandemic last year.
The Philippines recorded its highest number of daily infections in four weeks on Friday. Indonesia's seven-day average of new cases reached its highest in more than two months on Sunday.
A surge of cases has also been reported near Myanmar's Indian border - raising concerns about a health system that has collapsed since February. (Reuters)
May
Japan Considers Asking Olympic Fans For Negative COVID Tests, Vaccinations - Media
Written by Nur Yasmin
Japan is considering requiring fans attending the Tokyo Olympics to show negative COVID-19 test results or vaccination records, the Yomiuri newspaper reported on Monday, as a new poll showed public opposition to the Games remained strong.
Japan extended on Friday a state of emergency in Tokyo and other areas to June 20, and with the opening of the Games less than two months away, public confidence has been shaken by the fourth wave of coronavirus infections and a slow vaccination rollout.
Foreign spectators have already been banned and organizers are expected to make a decision next month on whether Japanese fans will be able to attend the Games, set to run between July 23 and Aug. 8., and under what conditions.
In addition to other measures like banning loud cheering and high-fives, the Yomiuri said the government was considering whether spectators should be required to show a negative test result taken within a week of attending an Olympic event.
The government's top spokesman Katsunobu Kato told reporters on Monday he was unaware of any decision on the issue.
"In order to make the Games a success it's necessary to take into account the feelings of the people," Kato said, adding that organizers were preparing to ensure measures were in place to stage the event safely.
The Tokyo Olympics organizing committee did not immediately respond to an email requesting comment on the newspaper report.
But Toshiaki Endo, vice president of the committee, told Reuters some spectators could be allowed into venues, although he personally preferred a total ban in order to reassure the public amid widespread opposition to the Games.
The Yomiuri report provoked thousands of posts on social media criticizing the country's continued push to host the Olympics in the middle of a pandemic.
The term "negative test certificate" was trending on Twitter in Japan, garnering over 26,000 tweets by Monday afternoon.
"If you can't eat, cheer, or do high-fives, what's the point in paying for a ticket and an expensive test?" asked a Twitter user, while others questioned the accuracy of such tests.
In a poll published by the Nikkei paper on Monday, over 60% of respondents were in favor of canceling or delaying the Games, a result in line with previous polls by other media outlets.
The Games have already been postponed once due to the pandemic but the Japanese government and the International Olympic Committee have said the event will go ahead under strict COVID-safe rules. (Reuters)
May
China, Taiwan Spar Again Over Vaccines, Accuse Each Other Of Politicking
Written by Nur Yasmin
China and Taiwan traded more accusations on Monday about COVID-19 vaccines, with Beijing saying they should not be a political tool while Taiwan's ruling party said China was the "black hand" preventing it from accessing shots internationally.
The two have sparred repeatedly since the pandemic started, over everything from China's transparency about the virus' spread to Taiwan's lack of full access to the World Health Organization, worsening already bad ties.
Japan said on Friday it would consider sharing COVID-19 vaccines with other countries as a ruling party panel urged that part of its stock of AstraZeneca Plc doses be provided to Chinese-claimed Taiwan, which welcomed the news.
Taiwan is battling a spike in domestic infections and has vaccinated less than 2% of its people, while Japan has secured more than 400 million doses, or double what its adult population needs.
Speaking in Beijing, Chinese Foreign Ministry spokesman Wang Wenbin said they had "noted" that Japan cannot even guarantee its own people enough vaccines at the moment, and that many people in Taiwan had doubts about the offer.
"I want to emphasize that vaccine assistance should return to the original purpose of saving lives, and should not be reduced to a tool for political self-interest," he said.
China has offered Taiwan vaccines, but Taiwan says made-in-China shots have too many safety concerns. Taiwan has also accused China of blocking a deal with Germany's BioNTech SE, which Beijing denies.
Taiwan's ruling Democratic Progressive Party (DPP) said China's comment last week that Taiwan would not succeed in using vaccines to seek its independence showed China was the "black hand behind the scenes" preventing Taiwan from getting access to vaccines internationally.
The wide use of vaccines is essential to ultimately controlling the virus, it said.
"However, in the face of the pandemic, China has used it as a political bargaining chip to prevent Taiwan from obtaining vaccines from the world," the party added.
China considers democratically-ruled Taiwan its own territory. (Reuters)
May
Singapore To Start Vaccinating 12-18 Year-Olds As PM Outlines Reopening Plans
Written by Nur Yasmin
Singapore is opening up its COVID-19 vaccination program to adolescents from Tuesday to help contain the latest outbreak that has infected some students and will step up testing and tracing.
The city-state is among the first countries in the world to offer vaccines to teenagers before completing the inoculation of adults.
The city-state will open up vaccination for 12-18-year-old adolescents, followed by the last group of young adults aged 39 years and below.
"As long as our population is mostly vaccinated, we should be able to trace, isolate, and treat the cases that pop up, and prevent a severe and disastrous outbreak," Prime Minister Lee Hsien Loong said on Monday in a speech.
The prime minister said everyone who is eligible for vaccination and wants one should be able to get at least their first jab by the country's national day, which falls on Aug. 9.
Over a third of Singapore's population of 5.7 million has received at least the first dose so far.
The country should also be able to relax recently imposed restrictions on social gatherings after two weeks if the local COVID-19 situation continues to improve, he added.
Singapore re-imposed some restrictions on social gatherings this month, the toughest since exiting a lockdown last year, to combat a recent spike in local COVID-19 infections. The current restrictions are to last until June 13.
It will hasten contact tracing and testing, including via over-the-counter DIY tests. Lee said he had received confirmation of faster deliveries of COVID-19 vaccines over the next two months.
The city-state has been using the Pfizer-BioNTech, (22UAy.DE), and Moderna vaccines.
In another announcement on Monday, the city-state said it will allow private healthcare providers to access other COVID-19 vaccines that are on the World Health Organization's (WHO) emergency use listing, such as shots from Johnson & Johnson, AstraZeneca, and Sinopharm.
Ong Ye Kung, the health minister, said this means that if approved by the WHO, institutions can apply to draw on 200,000 doses of the vaccine developed by China's Sinovac Biotech, which has been delivered but awaits Singapore's regulatory nod.
Although Singapore's cases are only a fraction of those recorded in neighboring countries, the outbreak follows months of reporting few or no local cases each day. The island-state confirmed 16 new local COVID-19 cases on Monday, down from a recent high of 38 on May 16.
With its economy dependent on being a trade and transport hub, Singapore is under pressure to reopen safely.
Lee said Singapore would have to prepare for COVID-19 to become endemic. "In this new normal, we will have to learn to carry on with our lives even with the virus in our midst," he said. (Reuters)
May
Australia’s Victoria COVID-19 Cluster Swells To 51, Next Few Days ‘Critical’
Written by Nur Yasmin
Australia’s second-most populous state of Victoria, the epicentre of the country’s latest coronavirus hotspot, reported 11 new cases of community transmission on Monday and authorities warned the situation could worsen in coming days.
The state officially reported five new cases in the 24 hours to midnight. At a press conference on Monday, authorities announced a further six cases were recorded after the late night cut-off which will reflect in Tuesday's data, taking the current cluster to 51.
Victoria went into a strict seven-day lockdown on Friday after new COVID-19 infections in the state capital Melbourne ended its three-month run of zero community cases. Authorities identified several Melbourne schools, supermarkets, department stores and gyms among hundreds of exposure sites.
The swelling numbers have raised questions over whether the lockdown will be extended beyond the seven days announced initially.
"The challenge ahead of us is a very, very significant one," Victorian acting Premier James Merlino told reporters. "We are seeing a small number of cases infecting a large number of contacts."
The situation was "incredibly serious" and the next few days will be critical, Merlino added.
"I want to be really clear with everyone that this outbreak may well get worse before it gets better."
Medical officials have said the latest COVID-19 variant, first detected in India, was likely to be more virulent than the original strains, taking just one day to infect another person compared with earlier strains which can take about five or six.
AGED CARE RISKS
Authorities are concerned about the virus taking hold in aged care homes after two workers and one resident at the Arcare facility in Melbourne tested positive, the home operator said in a statement.
Another resident is being re-tested for COVID-19.
Victoria endured one of the world's strictest and longest lockdowns last year to suppress a second wave of COVID-19 that killed more than 800 people in the state, accounting for 90% of Australia's total deaths since the pandemic began. Hundreds of elderly Victorians in residential aged care facilities were among the fatalities.
Overall, Australia has been among the most successful globally in curbing the pandemic thanks to swift contact tracing, snap lockdowns, and strict social distancing rules, with 22,275 local cases and 910 deaths.
However, the government has come under pressure for its slow vaccine rollout due to supply constraints as well as hesitancy among its citizens to take the AstraZeneca jab after Australia put age restrictions following some cases of blood clots.
The latest outbreak in Victoria has spurred people to get inoculated with the federal health minister saying a record 630,547 doses were delivered last week, twice the number seen four weeks ago.
Nationally, 4.24 million COVID-19 doses have been delivered. (Reuters)
May
Taiwan Approves $15.2 Billion In New Spending To Deal With COVID-19 Impact
Written by Nur Yasmin
Taiwan's parliament approved on Monday an extra T$420 billion ($15.20 billion) in stimulus spending to help the economy deal with the COVID-19 pandemic, as the island curbs business activity to counter a spike in domestic infections.
Early and effective prevention steps, including largely closing its borders, had succeeded in shielding Taiwan from the worst of the pandemic.
But cases have surged in recent weeks, prompting the government to limit personal gatherings and shut entertainment venues while it tries to speed up its vaccination program.
The new money is in addition to previously announced stimulus spending worth T$420 billion, and the funding will run until June 30 of next year.
The central bank is also running a separate T$400 billion scheme to provide preferential loans to small and medium-sized businesses.
Taiwan's government has repeatedly sought to allay fears that the current outbreak of domestic infections will affect the export-dependent economy, a major global supplier of semiconductors.
Taiwan's central bank said on Monday it was paying close attention to how the spread of the virus could affect economic growth and that it will act if needed to ensure financial stability.
However, Taiwan's stock market has largely shaken off concerns about the coronavirus impact, with the benchmark index closing up 1.2% on Monday.
Infections have been heavily concentrated in Taipei and its nearby cities, and the numbers are beginning to fall.
($1 = 27.6240 Taiwan dollars) (Reuters)
May
Macron says France will help Africa make more COVID-19 vaccines locally
Written by Nur Yasmin
President Emmanuel Macron said on Friday France would invest in boosting the production of COVID-19 vaccines in Africa, to help close a gap in the availability of the shots between African and Western nations.
Speaking at a joint news conference with South African President Cyril Ramaphosa in Pretoria, Macron said Africa made up around 20% of the world's need for vaccines but only 1% of vaccine production.
"How do we boost the production of vaccines on the African continent?" he said. "On this, we will this afternoon have an investment strategy to help these industrials produce more, and quite quickly."
He said France already had a partnership with South Africa's Biovac Institute. Later on Friday, Macron opened another one with South African pharmaceutical company Aspen.
"We need to vaccinate as quickly as possible the maximum number of people...all over the world," Macron said. "It is our moral duty; it is also in everyone's interests."
Macron is on the second and final leg of an Africa trip that included Rwanda.
He reiterated support for waiving intellectual property rights for COVID-19 vaccines, a move supported by U.S. President Joe Biden but opposed by Germany.
At the launch of his vaccine support initiative at Pretoria University, Macron called for regulated vaccine prices to prevent African nations being ripped off.
"Poor countries are paying much more probably than the rich countries. We are crazy," he said. "Number one fight: ... we need common pricing. This is the best way not to waste public money."
Ramaphosa said earlier this month that if wealthy nations hogged COVID-19 shots while millions in poor countries died waiting for them it would amount to vaccine apartheid.
The European Union will deliver more than 100 million doses to Africa this year, of which 30 million will come from France.
Speaking after Macron, Ramaphosa complained that "vaccines are just trickling into Africa."
"We cannot continue to wait at...the back of the queue," he said. "The longer we wait, the more lives we put at risk." (Reuters)