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Olaf Scholz will take over from Angela Merkel as chancellor after twice serving in her governments. (File photo: AFP/Michael Kappeler, Pool) - 

Germany's parliament will officially elect Olaf Scholz as the country's next chancellor on Wednesday (Dec 8), bringing the curtain down on Angela Merkel's 16-year reign and ushering in a new political era with the centre-left in charge.

Scholz led his Social Democrats to victory against Merkel's conservative CDU-CSU bloc in an epochal election in September, as the veteran chancellor prepared to leave politics after four consecutive terms in office.

Together with the Greens and the liberal Free Democrats, Scholz's SPD managed in a far shorter time than expected to forge a coalition that aspires to make Germany greener and fairer.

"I want the 20s to be a time of new beginnings," Scholz told Die Zeit weekly, declaring an ambition to push forward "the biggest industrial modernisation which will be capable of stopping climate change caused by mankind".

Putting equality rhetoric into practice, he unveiled the country's first gender-balanced Cabinet on Monday, with women in key security portfolios.

"That corresponds to the society we live in - half of the power belongs to women," said Scholz, who describes himself as a "feminist".

The centre-left's return to power in Europe's biggest economy could shift the balance on a continent still reeling from Brexit, and with the other major player, France, heading into presidential elections in 2022.

But even before it took office, Scholz's "traffic light" coalition - named after the three parties' colours - was already given a baptism of fire in the form of a fierce fourth wave of the COVID-19 pandemic.

With intensive care beds running out in some regions and a rampant rise in infection numbers showing no signs of abating, Scholz and his new team have been pressed - including by Merkel - to agree new curbs even before they are sworn in by parliament.

After Austria set the example, and with Germany struggling to boost stagnating vaccination numbers, the parties also came under pressure to make an about-turn on a pledge made earlier in the pandemic not to make vaccinations compulsory.

Scholz has since spoken out in favour of mandatory vaccination, saying he wanted MPs to vote on the issue before year's end with a view of implementing it in February.

"For my government, there are no red lines on what must be done. We're ruling nothing out," he told Die Zeit.

Dubbed "the discreet" by left-leaning daily TAZ, Scholz, 63, is often described as austere or robotic.

But he also has a reputation for being a meticulous workhorse.

An experienced hand in government, Scholz was labour minister in Merkel's first coalition from 2007 to 2009 before taking over as vice-chancellor and finance minister in 2015.

Yet his three-party-alliance is the first such mix at the federal level, as the FDP is not a natural partner for the SPD or the Greens.

Keeping the trio together will require a delicate balancing act taking into account the FDP's business-friendly leanings, the SPD's social equality instincts and the Greens' demands for sustainability.

Under their coalition deal, the parties have agreed to secure Germany's path to carbon neutrality, including through huge investments in sustainable energy.

They also aim to return to a constitutional no-new-debt rule - suspended during the pandemic - by 2023.

Incoming foreign minister Annalena Baerbock of the Greens has vowed to put human rights at the centre of German diplomacy.

She has signalled a more assertive stance towards authoritarian regimes like China and Russia after the commerce-driven pragmatism of Merkel's 16 years in power.

Critics have accused Merkel of putting Germany's export-dependent economy first in international dealings.

Nevertheless, she is still so popular at home that she would probably have won a fifth term had she sought one.

The veteran politician is also widely admired abroad for her steady hand guiding Germany through a myriad of crises//CNA

An employee has her certification checked as Italy's new "Green Pass" vaccination requirement for employees to enter their offices became mandatory, at the Trenitalia, Italian train company offices, in Rome on Oct 15, 2021. (Photo: AP/Andrew Medichini) - 

People in Italy unvaccinated against COVID-19 can no longer go to the theatre, cinemas, live music venues or major sporting events under new rules that came into force on Monday (Dec 6).

Only those who have recently recovered from COVID-19 are exempt from the rules, which represent a significant tightening of restrictions in the face of rising infections.

New measures are also being enforced on public transport, with a so-called Green Pass showing proof of vaccination, recent recovery or a negative COVID-19 test now required even on local services.

A man in his 50s was fined €400 for not having his pass on Monday morning as he got off a bus near Piazza del Popolo in Rome, according to the Corriere della Sera newspaper.

"I don't have it because I wanted to get vaccinated in the next few days," he was reported as saying.

A record 1.3 million Green Passes were downloaded on Sunday ahead of the change.

Meanwhile in Rome at the weekend, new rules requiring face masks to be worn outdoors in the busiest shopping streets came into effect.

Italy was the first European country to be hit by coronavirus in early 2020 and has one of the highest death tolls, at more than 134,000.

However, it is currently faring better than many of its neighbours, with 15,000 cases out of a population of 60 million reported on Sunday.

Almost 85 per cent of those older than 12 have been vaccinated, a booster campaign is in full swing and jabs will soon be available for younger children.

The Green Pass was introduced in August for access to theatres and cinemas, museums and indoor dining, and extended to workplaces in October - a move that sparked widespread protests.

From now until Jan 15, a new "Super Green Pass", which can only be obtained through vaccination or recent recovery, will be required for cultural activities - although not museums - and inside restaurants.

However, having a coffee at the bar of a cafe and eating outside is allowed without a Green Pass.

The restrictions will be further tightened in regions at higher risk of coronavirus.

Currently most of Italy is classed as the lowest of four levels, which range from white to yellow, orange and red.

Two regions are yellow - Friuli Venezia Giulia and Bolzano, which both border Austria, a country in partial lockdown over the number of cases there//CNA

Japan's Prime Minister Fumio Kishida wearing a protective face mask delivers his policy speech at the start of an extraordinary session of the lower house of the parliament, amid the coronavirus disease (COVID-19) pandemic, in Tokyo, Japan December 6, 2021. REUTERS/Issei Kato - 

Japanese Prime Minister Fumio Kishida vowed on Monday (Dec 6) to ensure worker wage hikes to protect the economy from rising global inflation, while strengthening the country's defences as it deals with an assertive China and unpredictable North Korea.

Kishida made the remarks on the opening day of parliament's extra session convened to debate a supplementary budget to cushion the blow from the COVID-19 pandemic as he aims to restore the economy and then tackle fiscal reform.

Wage hikes hold the key to the premier's aim of defeating deflation by reversing a cycle of tame wage growth and weak consumer spending while encouraging Japanese firms to spend their record cash piles on boosting wages and investment.

Since he took office in October, Kishida has piled pressure on Japanese firms, urging those whose earnings have recovered to pre-pandemic levels to raise wages by 3per cent or more.

The government will lay the groundwork to help private-sector firms hike wages by strengthening taxation and giving bold deductions for companies that raise pay, he added.

"As anxiety has grown that rising global inflation may have ripple effects on Japan, I will do the utmost to (realise) wage hikes in order to protect the Japanese economy," Kishida said.

On security policy, Japan will fundamentally strengthen its defence posture by looking into options including acquiring the capability to strike enemy bases, Kishida said.

"In order to safeguard the people's lives and livelihood, we'll examine all the options including the capability to attack enemy bases ... and strengthen our defence posture fundamentally with a sense of speed," Kishida said.

Such capability would mark a shift in Japan's military posture as Tokyo, constrained by its post-World War II pacifist constitution, is to play a role of the shield in its security alliance with the United States, while Washington is to play a role of the spear.

Obtaining capabilities to strike enemy bases has been floated in recent Japanese governments and Kishida was warm to the idea even when he was running in a ruling party leadership election in September as missiles become increasingly capable of evading interceptors.

As part of an effort to boost Japan's defence capacity, the government will renew three main documents laying out the nation's security policy - the National Security Strategy, National Defence Programme Guidelines and Medium-Term Defence Programme - in a year, Kishida said.

On Japan's coronavirus response, Kishida said he planned to make it possible to get a booster shot without waiting for the end of the current waiting period, set by the government, of eight months after the second shot.

Calls for early booster shots have been mounting in Japan as the highly transmissible Omicron variant of the coronavirus is spreading globally, although daily COVID-19 cases have remained low in recent weeks.

If infections start picking up pace again, the government will respond swiftly with such measures as stricter restrictions on activities, "while seeking the people's understanding carefully," Kishida said.

His policy of promptly taking anti-coronavirus steps appears to have paid off as voter support for his cabinet ticked up after the government last week enforced tighter border controls against Omicron, the Yomiuri Shimbun daily said on Monday//CNA

Russian President Vladimir Putin's visit to India will be only his second trip abroad since the coronavirus pandemic began. (File photo: SPUTNIK/AFP) - 

Russian President Vladimir Putin will arrive in India on Monday (Dec 6) for just his second overseas trip since the pandemic, seeking to bolster military and energy ties with a traditional ally being courted by Washington.

In its efforts to address a rising China, Washington has set up the Quad security dialogue with India, Japan, and Australia, raising concerns in both Beijing and Moscow.

India was close to the Soviet Union during the Cold War, a relationship that has endured, with New Delhi calling it a "special and privileged strategic partnership".

"The friendship between India and Russia has stood the test of time," Indian Prime Minister Narendra Modi told Putin at a virtual summit in September. "You have always been a great friend of India."

It is only the Russian leader's second trip abroad since the coronavirus pandemic began - he skipped both the G20 and COP26 summits this year - after a June summit with US President Joe Biden in Geneva.

"It's hugely symbolic," said Nandan Unnikrishnan from the New Delhi-based Observer Research Foundation think tank.

"There has been a lot of speculation about the nature of the India-Russia relationship and whether it is fraying because of Russia's closeness with China and India's with the US, but this visit puts all that to rest."

Nonetheless Putin has to contend with complex regional dynamics, with tensions mounting between New Delhi and Beijing, traditionally an ally of Moscow, following deadly clashes in a disputed Himalayan region.

"Russia's influence in the region is very limited," said Tatiana Belousova of OP Jindal Global University in Haryana, "mostly because of its close ties with China and unwillingness to act in dissonance with the Chinese regional interests."

The Kremlin said last week the talks will be dominated by defence and energy issues, with the boss of Russian energy giant Rosneft, Igor Sechin, also attending as a "number of important energy agreements" were on the table.

Russia has long been a key arms supplier to India, which is looking to modernise its armed forces, and one of their most high-profile current contracts is for the long-range S-400 ground-to-air missile defence system.

The deal, worth more than US$5 billion, was signed in 2018 and deliveries have reportedly begun, but it threatens to upend the burgeoning relationship between New Delhi and Washington.

The United States has threatened sanctions under the Countering America's Adversaries Through Sanctions Act (CAATSA), which is aimed at reining in Russia, and the state department said last week that no decisions had been made on any waivers for India.

"It is quite remarkable that India still decided to go ahead with the S-400 deal, despite the US disapproval," said Belousova.

New Delhi has long sought to diversify its military imports but analysts believe it could take some time before it moves away from Russia.

Military equipment was "paramount" to India given "unabated" tensions with Pakistan, according to Unnikrishnan. "You're going to try and nurture whatever is required to ensure that."

India is also keen to increase domestic production and has launched a joint venture with Russia to manufacture AK-203 assault rifles.

India and Russia normally hold annual summits, but the leaders' last in-person meeting was on the sidelines of the 2019 BRICS Summit in Brazil.

"The leaders will review the state and prospects of bilateral relations and discuss ways to further strengthen the strategic partnership between the two countries," India's ministry of external affairs said in a statement last month.

The two countries' foreign and defence ministers held talks on Monday ahead of Putin's arrival.

A number of agreements and contracts were signed on small arms and military cooperation, India's defence minister Rajnath Singh tweeted.

Moscow and New Delhi hold "identical or near-identical positions on the most important global and security issues", said Russian foreign minister Sergei Lavrov//CNA