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December
Sydney gears up for New Year's Eve celebrations despite record Omicron surge
Written by nuke
Police patrol in front of the Sydney Opera House on Monday, Sep 13, 2021. (Photo: AFP) -
Sydney, the Australian city worst-affected by the Omicron wave, will press ahead with New Year's Eve celebrations on Friday (Dec 31), with authorities encouraging revellers to come out and enjoy the festivities despite a record number of COVID-19 cases.
Thousands are expected to flock to prime harbourside spots to watch Sydney's famous fireworks, the traditional 12-minute pyrotechnic display to ring in the new year, with queues forming at many vantage points since early morning.
Prime Minister Scott Morrison wished people to "enjoy the evening", while NSW Premier Dominic Perrottet urged everyone to "head out and enjoy New Year's" as daily infections in the state nearly doubled to a record 21,151 on Friday.
Many countries have scaled back New Year celebrations in an effort to contain rampant contagion from the Omicron coronavirus variant, but celebrations will proceed in Sydney as normal after last year's plans were toned down due to COVID-19.
Sydney, the capital of New South Wales (NSW) state, is one of the world's first major cities to welcome each New Year, with a public countdown and fireworks display over its iconic Opera House.
All Australian states, except for Western Australia, have begun to live with the virus after higher vaccination levels and the ease in restrictions has pushed cases to record highs.
Despite the record surge, Perrottet on Friday reiterated NSW is "in a very strong position" due to higher inoculations and that hospitals were coping with the Omicron wave.
"While case numbers are substantially increasing, compared to where we were with the Delta variant, our position remains incredibly strong," Perrottet told reporters.
Of more than 135,000 active cases in Australia, only 127 people are in intensive care, according to official data.
Australia on Friday reported more than 32,400 cases, a new pandemic high, far exceeding the previous record of 21,329 a day earlier as total infections neared 400,000. A total of 2,239 deaths have been registered since the pandemic began//CNA
December
Germany's Olaf Scholz wants G7 to be pioneer for climate-friendly growth
Written by nuke
German Chancellor Olaf Scholz poses for photographs during the television recording of his annual New Year's speech at the chancellery in Berlin, Germany December 30, 2021. Kay Nietfeld/Pool via REUTERS -
Germany wants to use its presidency of the Group of Seven (G7) to develop it into a club that is pioneering in its efforts to achieve green growth and a socially just world, Chancellor Olaf Scholz said in his first New Year's address.
"Starting tomorrow, Germany will for one year take over the presidency of the group of seven economically strong, democratic states - the G7," Scholz said in his speech on Friday, according to a pre-released transcript from the government's press office.
"We will use our presidency so that this group of states becomes a pioneer - a pioneer for a climate-neutral way of doing business and a fair world," Scholz said.
In his previous roles as vice chancellor and finance minister, Scholz suggested that the European Union should team up with countries like the United States, Canada and Japan to create a "climate club" in which members agree joint rules and common standards on how to reduce carbon emissions.
The goal of such a club would be not only to accelerate the global shift towards a more climate-friendly economy, but also to avoid trade friction linked to different green tariff regimes, such as the EU's planned carbon border levy.
"International cooperation is important. In a world that will soon be home to 10 billion people, our voices will only be heard if we perform in a choir with many others," Scholz said.
That is also the reason why Germany's new coalition government is determined to strengthen the European Union, said Scholz, who succeeded long-serving former Chancellor Angela Merkel earlier this month.
"Our goal is a sovereign, strong Europe. A Europe that lives according to its common values of peace, the rule of law and democracy," the chancellor added.
On the issue of Ukraine, where Western countries are concerned by a Russian military build-up near the border, Scholz reiterated that the territorial integrity of Ukraine must be respected. Germany would continue to work closely with transatlantic allies to guarantee peace, he said.
"With a view on Ukraine, we are currently facing new challenges. The inviolability of borders is a high good - and not negotiable," Scholz said.
Russia denies planning to attack Ukraine and says it has the right to move its troops on its own soil as it likes//CNA
December
Quebec announces curfew, Ontario cuts isolation period as Canada tackles Omicron
Written by nuke
A person enters Copernicus Lodge after new provincial rules limiting visitations at long term care homes come into effect due to spiking coronavirus disease (COVID-19) case numbers in Toronto, Ontario, Canada December 30, 2021. REUTERS/Carlos Osorio -
Canada's Ontario and Quebec announced fresh measures to combat COVID-19 on Thursday (Dec 30) as the country faces a rise in cases that has forced tens of thousands into isolation, made tests difficult to access and burdened its healthcare sector.
Quebec, Canada's second-most populous province, will ban private gatherings and dining out, as well as impose a night curfew from New Year's Eve in an escalation of curbs to rein in rapidly rising coronavirus cases due to the Omicron variant.
"Our experts tell us that there's a risk that we won't be able to treat all those who need it in the coming weeks," Quebec Premier Francois Legault told reporters at a briefing. "This is why I'm announcing new restrictions starting tomorrow."
Legault said indoor sports would be halted, and places of worship will be shut, except for funerals which up to 25 people will be allowed to attend.
Ontario, home to Toronto, Canada's biggest city, announced new measures to take effect on Friday, shortening the isolation period for vaccinated individuals with COVID-19 to five days from the onset of symptoms, the province's chief medical officer, Kieran Moore, told reporters at a briefing.
Ontario residents, with proper masking and physical distancing, would be allowed to stop isolating after five days if their symptoms resolve or if they are improving for at least 24 hours, Moore said.
The province, Canada's largest, will also limit free PCR tests to the most vulnerable cases. Schools, which were expected to reopen on Monday after a winter break, will stay shut for two additional days for authorities to implement preventive measures against coronavirus.
Earlier this week, Quebec, which is home to Canada's second-largest city Montreal, said it would allow some essential healthcare workers to continue working instead of isolating at home after testing positive to prevent staff shortages from crippling healthcare services.
Provinces across Canada have been reporting new daily COVID-19 case records as the highly infectious Omicron variant takes hold. On Thursday, Quebec reported 14,188 new coronavirus cases, while Ontario reported 13,807 cases.
Ontario is also starting to offer a fourth vaccine shot to residents of long-term care homes, retirement homes and other older adults living in groups three months after their third dose//CNA
December
Biden and Putin talk diplomacy, trade warnings over Ukraine
Written by nuke
US President Joe Biden seen speaking to his Russian counterpart Vladimir Putin from his home in Wilmington, Delaware on December 30, 2021, in an image provided by the White House (Photo: WHITE HOUSE/AFP/-) -
President Joe Biden on Thursday (Dec 30) warned his Russian counterpart Vladimir Putin of a tough US response to any invasion of Ukraine, while the Kremlin leader said anti-Moscow sanctions would be a "colossal mistake".
After a 50-minute phone call - their second in just over three weeks - both presidents indicated support for further diplomacy on the tense standoff between Russia and Western-backed Ukraine.
Putin was "pleased" overall with the talks, foreign policy adviser Yury Ushakov told reporters. A senior US official, who spoke on condition of anonymity, said the tone "was serious and substantive".
But there was no disguising the depth of disagreement - or the dangerously high stakes on the fringes of eastern Europe - ahead of in-person negotiations between high-ranking Russian and US officials on Jan 10.
Biden "made clear that the United States and its allies and partners will respond decisively if Russia further invades Ukraine", Press Secretary Jen Psaki said in a statement.
Ushakov, referring to Washington's repeated threats of intensive economic sanctions as a response to a Ukraine attack, said this would be "a colossal mistake". "We hope this will not happen."
Ushakov also said that Russia is looking for a concrete "result" in the January talks in Geneva, while the White House said it too wanted action - de-escalation by Russia's massive military presence on the Ukrainian border.
"President Biden reiterated that substantive progress in these dialogues can occur only in an environment of de-escalation rather than escalation," Psaki said.
Washington and its European allies accuse Russia of threatening former Soviet territory Ukraine with a new invasion. Around 100,000 Russian troops are massed near the border of the country, where Putin already seized the Crimea region in 2014 and is accused of fomenting a pro-Russian separatist war which erupted that same year in the east.
Moscow describes the menacing troop presence as protection against an encroaching West, particularly NATO, although Ukraine has not been offered membership in the military alliance.
Earlier this month, the Russians issued a sweeping set of demands, including guarantees that NATO not expand further and a bar on new US military bases in former territories of the Soviet Union.
The United States rejects what it calls a bid by the Kremlin to dictate independent countries' futures, and warns that if troops do cross into Ukraine, Russia will face blistering economic sanctions backed both by Washington and EU capitals.
Previous Western sanctions imposed after Moscow's annexation of Crimea have had little discernible impact.
Biden was shown in an official White House picture wearing a suit and tie and speaking from a large wooden desk lined with family photos in his Wilmington home. A framed US flag hung from the wall behind.
He went into the call ready to offer Putin a "diplomatic path" out of the crisis, a senior administration official told reporters.
In a holiday message to Biden hours before they talked, Putin said he was "convinced" that "we can move forward and establish an effective Russian-American dialogue based on mutual respect and consideration of each other's national interests".
Kremlin spokesman Dmitry Peskov told reporters that Putin was "in the mood for a conversation".
"We believe that only through talks is it possible to solve all the immediate problems that we have in abundance between us," Peskov said.
The January talks will see Russian officials sitting down separately with negotiators representing the United States, NATO and the regional OSCE security forum, which also includes the United States.
Russia's delegation will be led by Deputy Foreign Minister Sergei Ryabkov, and the US delegation by Deputy Secretary of State Wendy Sherman.
Ukraine, which wants to join NATO but has been told it is far from being ready to win acceptance, is eager not to be cut out of any wider deal.
US officials have been at pains to insist that no decision will be taken behind the Ukrainians' backs and that while US troops would not be sent to defend the country against Russia, ongoing deliveries of weapons and other military assistance are set to expand if Moscow attacks.
On Tuesday, the Pentagon said a US aircraft carrier group was to remain in the Mediterranean as a reassurance to European allies and on Thursday, CNN quoted a military official saying that a powerful US spy plane had flown over eastern Ukraine for the second time this week.
The plane is capable of monitoring large areas of territory, tracking and photographing everything from vehicles to other aircraft, the report said//CNA
December
French daily COVID-19 infections above 200,000 for second day running
Written by nuke
People, wearing protective face masks, walk on the Mouffetard street, amid the spread of the coronavirus disease (COVID-19) pandemic, in Paris, France, Dec 30, 2021. (Photo: REUTERS/Christian Hartmann) -
France reported 206,243 new confirmed coronavirus cases in the latest 24-hour period on Thursday, rising above 200,000 for the second day running as the Omicron variant takes hold.
A record of 208,099 was set on Wednesday, as Health Minister Oliver Veran warned of a "tsunami" of infections.
The seven-day moving average of daily new infections, which evens out reporting irregularities, reached a record 121,566, a figure multiplied by almost four in just a month.
Wearing masks in the streets of Paris and Lyon will be mandatory again as authorities seek to avoid a New Year's Eve infection spike.
The total number of people hospitalised for COVID-19 has increased by 465 over 24 hours, standing at a more than seven-month peak of 18,321.
But that figure is still almost half the record 33,497 reached in November 2020.
The COVID-19 death toll increased by 180 over 24 hours to 123,552. The seven-day moving average of daily deaths also stood at 180//CNA
December
S Korea Dec inflation at 3.7per cent, 2021 rate at decade high of 2.5per cent
Written by nuke
FILE PHOTO: A woman shops at an underground shopping district in the Gangnam area of Seoul, South Korea, June 28, 2016. Picture taken June 28, 2016. REUTERS/Kim Hong-Ji -
South Korea's annual inflation this year outpaced the central bank's current forecasts and soared to a decade-high, proving to policymakers prices are becoming harder to tame and boosting the case for more interest rate hikes in 2022.
The average consumer inflation rate for the whole year surged to 2.5per cent, the fastest since 2011 and up from 0.5per cent in 2020, government data showed on Friday.
That beats the Bank of Korea's 2.3per cent projection made in November.
December consumer prices jumped 3.7per cent from a year earlier, slightly slowing from a decade-high of a 3.8per cent rise in November and beating a 3.6per cent gain tipped in a Reuters survey.
Rebounding services spending and persistent supply disruptions are underpinning inflationary pressure in Asia's fourth-largest economy and fanning views that the BOK could raise interest rates at its next policy meeting on Jan. 14.
On Nov. 25, the BOK raised interest rates for the second time since the pandemic began to 1.00per cent and revised up it's inflation outlook as concerns about rising household debt and consumer prices grew.
An index measuring service costs increased 2.6per cent from a year earlier in December after a 2.4per cent gain a month earlier, while fresh food prices jumped 6.7per cent following a 5.6per cent increase in November//CNA
December
MMG's Las Bambas silent on any copper production restart after Peru deal
Written by nuke
FILE PHOTO: People sit in the mountains in front of a mine operated by MMG Las Bambas, in a region where locals claim mining activity has negatively affected crop yields and killed livestock, outside of Cusco, Peru October 14, 2021. REUTERS/Angela Ponce/File Photo -
MMG Ltd's Las Bambas mine on Thursday welcomed an agreement by a local Peruvian community to lift a month-long road blockade that derailed its operations, but did not say whether it would now restart copper production.
Peru is the world's No 2 copper producer. The agreement was reached at a meeting earlier on Thursday organized by the government in its most ambitious effort yet to try to unblock the road.
Prime Minister Mirtha Vasquez traveled to Chumbivilcas, the site of the disruption, and met with local residents and company executives.
Las Bambas, one of Peru's largest copper mines, suspended operations on Dec. 18 due to the blockade, which prevented the firm from transporting its copper production to a sea port.
"Las Bambas welcomes the commitment to dialogue of the representatives of the Chumbivilcas communities and recognises the effort of the national authorities ... to try to find better investment conditions," the miner said in a brief statement.
The suspension has caused a major problem for the country's leftist administration, which needs the miner's tax revenue but has also pledged to prioritise demands from marginalised communities.
"The communities commit to continue the dialogue in a climate of peace and social tranquility, without the use of force," the meeting minutes said.
The minutes also acknowledged that the government has yet to address the main demand from Chumbivilcas. The community wants Las Bambas to hire local residents to drive copper trucks and also give them cash contributions.
Those issues will be reviewed again in mid January, the minutes said.
Representatives for Chumbivilcas did not respond to requests for comment.
Chumbivilcas residents reached a similar agreement not to block the road used by Las Bambas in October, but then blocked the road regardless in November when negotiations stalled//CNA
December
Americans told to avoid cruise travel, even if vaccinated against COVID-19
Written by nuke
US health authorities are now urging Americans to avoid cruising, regardless of COVID-19 vaccination status. (Photo: GETTY IMAGES NORTH AMERICA/AFP/Joe Raedle) -
US health authorities on Thursday (Dec 30) urged Americans to avoid cruise travel even if they are vaccinated, citing the surge in COVID-19 cases spurred by the Omicron variant.
"Avoid cruise travel, regardless of vaccination status," said a posting on the US Centers for Disease Control and Prevention's website that upgraded the travel notice on cruising to Level 4, the highest on its COVID-19 risk scale.
"Even fully vaccinated travellers may be at risk for getting and spreading COVID-19 variants," the notice said.
Between Dec 15 and 29, there were 5,013 COVID-19 cases in US waters reported to the CDC, 31 times the level in the prior two weeks, according to an email from a CDC spokesperson.
The agency recommends mitigation steps that include getting vaccinated and boosted, wearing a mask in indoor settings and taking a test before gathering.
"The virus that causes COVID-19 spreads easily between people in close quarters on board ships, and the chance of getting COVID-19 on cruise ships is very high, even if you are fully vaccinated and have received a COVID-19 vaccine booster dose," the CDC said.
The surge in fresh cases linked to the highly-transmissible Omicron variant has raised fresh challenges for the cruise industry, which resumed service in the United States this summer after being essentially dormant for more than a year.
On Thursday, Royal Caribbean modified or cancelled 16 destinations out of 331 due to the uptick in COVID-19 cases. Shares of Royal Caribbean dipped 0.2 per cent in afternoon trading.
Shares of Carnival fell 0.6 per cent in early afternoon trading, while Norwegian Cruise Line dropped 1.5 per cent//CNA
December
UK rail operator cancels London route due to COVID-19 disruption
Written by nuke
People leave a train at the Victoria tube station amid the coronavirus disease (COVID-19) outbreak, in London, Britain, on Jan 12, 2021. (Photo: REUTERS/Henry Nicholls) -
A British rail operator has been forced to suspend all direct services to the busy London Victoria train station until Jan 10 after staff fell ill with COVID-19 and others had to isolate.
Southern Rail said on Twitter that due to coronavirus isolation and sickness, there would be no direct services to or from London Victoria, disrupting commuter routes from south London and lines that run to the south of the country.
Britain is undergoing another heavy wave of the coronavirus pandemic driven by the Omicron variant, with a record 183,037 daily cases reported on Wednesday. Office workers have been asked to work from home where they can to reduce transmission.
While the government has said that the Omicron variant appears to be milder than others, it is highly transmissible and businesses across the country have been hit by staff shortages.
In the United States airlines were forced to cancel thousands of flights over Christmas as COVID-19 reduced the number of crews that were available//CNA
December
Biden and Putin to speak on Thursday amid Ukraine tensions
Written by nuke
U.S. President Joe Biden and Russia's President Vladimir Putin shake hands during the U.S.-Russia summit at Villa La Grange in Geneva, Switzerland, June 16, 2021. REUTERS/Denis Balibouse/Pool -
US President Joe Biden and Russian President Vladimir Putin will speak on Thursday (Dec 30), the White House said, as Washington crafts a common response to Russia's military build-up on the Ukraine border with European allies.
The two leaders will discuss a range of topics, including upcoming security talks between the countries and a tense situation in Europe, White House National Security Council spokesperson Emily Horne said in a statement.
Kremlin spokesman Dmitry Peskov told Reuters the call was planned for "late Thursday evening," without elaborating.
Horne said Biden had spoken with leaders across Europe about the situation on the Ukraine border, while Biden administration officials were in touch with NATO, the European Union and the Organization for Security and Cooperation in Europe.
Moscow has alarmed the West by massing tens of thousands of troops near Ukraine in the past two months, following its seizure of Ukraine's Crimea peninsula in 2014 and its backing of separatists fighting Kyiv troops in eastern Ukraine.
Russia denies planning to attack Ukraine and says it has the right to move its troops on its own soil as it likes.
Moscow, worried by what it says is the West's re-arming of Ukraine, has said it wants legally-binding guarantees NATO will not expand further eastwards, and that certain offensive weapons will not be deployed to Ukraine or other neighbouring countries.
US concerns have not ebbed in recent weeks, according to a senior Biden administration official. Other US officials said that despite a report over the weekend that Russia would be pulling back about 10,000 troops from its border with Ukraine, they had seen little evidence to support that so far.
"We are at a moment of crisis and have been for some weeks now given the Russian build-up, and it will take a high level of engagement to address this and to find a path of de-escalation," said one of the officials, who declined to be named.
That person said Putin requested the call with Biden.
"When President Biden has asked to speak with President Putin over the course of 2021, President Putin has said, Yes, let's talk. And when President Putin says, I'm interested in touching base and having a phone call, President Biden says yes."
Biden is likely to reiterate during the call that the United States will take swift economic action against Russia in the case of an invasion. They will also reinforce the North Atlantic Treaty Organization in such a case.
But the US president has been pushing direct diplomacy as an alternative.
The Biden administration has been in deep talks with Ukraine as well as a host of NATO allies, including those bordering Russia, according to Horne, the White House spokesperson.
Biden will likely speak with Ukraine's President Volodymyr Zelenskiy soon, another official said. US Secretary of State Antony Blinken spoke with the Ukrainian leader on Wednesday and expressed "unwavering support for Ukraine's independence," according to a spokesperson.
JSTARS, a type of US military spy plane, operated in Ukrainian airspace for the first time earlier this week, though different types of surveillance aircraft are common in the region, officials said.
Biden on Tuesday said "we'll see" when asked if he would meet Putin on Jan 10, the same day US and Russian officials are due to hold security talks. But Biden is not expected to attend those talks or meet with Putin that day, an official said.
Russia and NATO are also set to hold talks on Jan 12, with a broader meeting including Moscow, Washington and other European countries slated for Jan 13.
Putin has compared to the current tensions to the Cold War-era Cuban Missile Crisis in 1962. Washington regards some of his demands, including restrictions on NATO expansion, as non-starters.
Conversations between Putin and Biden are likely to touch on other issues, too, including the ongoing talks with Iran over its nuclear program, a US official said//CNA