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International Olympic Committee President Thomas Bach and Japan Prime Minister Yoshihide Suga 

International Olympic Committee President Thomas Bach will visit Japan in May, the Kyodo News agency said on Saturday, as the nation struggles to contain a surge in COVID-19 cases before the start of the Games.

Bach will attend a torch relay ceremony in the western city of Hiroshima on May 17 and meet with Prime Minister Yoshihide Suga the next day, Kyodo said, citing sources close to the matter. Bach is expected to back Japan's commitment to safely hosting the Summer Games, Kyodo reported.

Representatives for the Tokyo Olympics could not be reached when called for comment outside regular business hours.With fewer than 100 days until the Olympics are due to start in Tokyo, Japan expanded quasi-emergency measures to 10 regions on Friday as a fourth wave of COVID-19 cases spread.Suga, who is on a state visit to the United States, said at a press conference on Friday that he told President Joe Biden he was committed to moving forward with the Games and that Biden offered his support//Reuters

Australia to continue review of COVID vaccinations - health minister

Australia will continue its review of coronavirus vaccines after a 48-year-old woman's death was likely linked to the inoculation, Health Minister Greg Hunt said on Saturday.

On Friday, Australia reported its first fatality from blood clots in a recipient of AstraZeneca's (AZN.L) COVID-19 shot. It was the third case of the rare blood clots appearing in people who have been administered the vaccine in the country.

"The government will ask ATAGI (Australian Technical Advisory Group on Immunisation) to ensure continuous review of all of the vaccines in terms of their safety and their efficacy," Hunt said at a televised briefing.

He said there will be no immediate change to further limit the use of the AstraZeneca vaccine and reiterated that the Pfizer (PFE.N) vaccine remains the preferred option for people under the age of 50.

There had been at least 885,000 doses of the AstraZeneca vaccines administered in Australia so far, equating to a frequency of instance of blood clot in every 295,000 cases, the Therapeutic Goods Administration (TGA) said earlier this week.

Hunt also said that a decision on whether to prioritise athletes and support staff in the COVID-19 vaccine rollout with the Tokyo Olympics fast approaching will be taken in the coming week.

"We shall want to see our olympians get to the Olympics and we want to see that they are safe," he said.

Australia has been one of the world's most successful countries in curbing the pandemic, with snap lockdowns, border closures and swift tracking limiting coronavirus infections to just under 29,500 infections, with 910 COVID-19 deaths//Reuters

US President Joe Biden and Russian President Vladimir Putin

Russia on Friday (Apr 16) banned top officials from US President Joe Biden's administration from entering the country and announced a wave of tit-for-tat sanctions and expulsions of diplomats, as tensions soar between the rivals.

The Russian action comes a day after Washington announced sanctions against Moscow and the expulsion of 10 Russian diplomats, in retaliation for what it says was interference by the Kremlin in US elections, a massive cyber attack and other hostile activity.

Moscow in a forceful response said top US officials including Attorney General Merrick Garland, Biden's chief domestic policy advisor Susan Rice, and FBI chief Christopher Wray would be banned from entering Russia.

Lists of officials banned from entry are usually kept secret, but Russia's foreign ministry said it was revealing the names due to the "unprecedented nature" of the current tensions with Washington.

Foreign Minister Sergei Lavrov told reporters that Russia was responding to US sanctions in "a tit-for-tat manner" by asking 10 US diplomats in Russia to leave the country while also expelling five Polish diplomats in response to a similar move by Warsaw.

Lavrov also said that Putin's top foreign policy aide, Yury Ushakov, had recommended that US envoy John Sullivan leave for Washington to conduct "serious consultations".

Sullivan said he had only seen a message on the Russian foreign ministry's website and was consulting with Washington.

"We have not received any official diplomatic correspondence providing details of the Russian government actions against the diplomatic mission of the United States of America in Russia," Sullivan said in a statement.

"It is not in our interest to get into an escalatory cycle, but we reserve the right to respond to any Russian retaliation against the United States," a spokesperson said in Washington.

Biden's suggestion earlier this week had amounted to a peace offering at a time when tensions between Russia and the West have escalated over the conflict in Ukraine.

The US penalties announced Thursday widened restrictions on US banks trading in Russian government debt and sanctioned 32 individuals accused of meddling in the 2020 US presidential vote//CNA

Queen Elizabeth and Britain bid farewell to Prince Philip

Queen Elizabeth bid a final farewell to Prince Philip, her husband of more than seven decades, at a ceremonial funeral on Saturday (Apr 17), with the nation set to fall silent to mark the passing of a pivotal figure in the British monarchy.

While the ceremony include some of the traditional grandeur of a significant royal event, there are just 30 mourners inside St George's Chapel at Windsor Castle for the funeral service because of COVID-19 restrictions.

There are no public procession, all the congregation wear masks, and the queen, who says the death has left a "huge void", sit alone.

"She's the queen, she behave with the extraordinary dignity and extraordinary courage that she always does. And at the same time, she is saying farewell to someone to who she was married for 73 years," said Justin Welby, the Archbishop of Canterbury, who help officiate at the service.

He said he expected the funeral to resonate with the millions of people around the world who have lost loved ones during the pandemic.

"I think there will be tears in many homes because other names will be on their minds, faces they've lost that they don't see again, funerals they couldn't go to as many haven't been able to go to this one because it is limited to 30 in the congregation," he said. "That will break many a heart."He called on the British public to pray for the monarch.

Philip, the Duke of Edinburgh, who had been by his wife's side throughout her record-breaking 69-year reign, died peacefully at the age of 99 last week at the castle where the royal couple had been staying during a recent lockdown.

A decorated Royal Navy veteran of World War Two, his funeral, much of which was planned in meticulous detail by the prince himself, has a strong military feel, with personnel from across the armed forces playing prominent roles.

At 1400 GMT, before the service starts, there will be a minute's silence.

The congregation will be limited to members of the royal family and Philip's family, with no place for political figures such as Prime Minister Boris Johnson, who will watch the event on television where it will be broadcast live.

The entire event will be held within the walls of Windsor Castle and the public have been asked not to congregate outside or at any other royal residences to show their respects//CNA