News Archives - Page 48 of 81

Pompeo Will Speak With His Successor Under Biden on Thursday

15Dec

By Alan LorenzNo Comments

US, News

Pompeo Will Speak With His Successor Under Biden on Thursday

US Secretary of State Mike Pompeo will have the first meeting with his likely successor next Thursday, when Joe Biden becomes president, Antony Blinken, according to CNN. The agreement is the first sign that Pompeo is willing to cooperate in a power transfer. The Secretary of State under Donald Trump was one of the first allies of the president to say after the election defeat that Trump would still be president after January 20. The fact that he has now agreed with Blinken is an essential step in the transfer of power. Ministry employees are happy with the upcoming meeting, according to CNN, even though it only takes 15 minutes. Blinken had already started preparations for his new job. Biden wants to immediately make the US a full member of the World Health Organization again,...

Fewer New Corona Infections After Weekend Reported in Germany

14Dec

By Alan LorenzNo Comments

Germany, Europe, News

Fewer New Corona Infections After Weekend Reported in Germany

The number of new corona infections detected in Germany in 24 hours has dropped slightly after days of nearly thirty thousand new infections. The Robert Koch Institute (RKI), the German counterpart of the RIVM, reported 16,362 new cases on Monday morning. The RKI reported Friday and Saturday that the number of infections in Germany had increased by more than 29,000 and 28,000 new cases. The number of new infections reported on Monday is usually lower because less testing is done on weekends, and fewer test results are passed on. A total of 1,337,078 people in Germany have now become infected. The number of people who died as a result of Covid-19 increased by 188 to 21,975. Chancellor Angela Merkel announced on Sunday that Germany would enter a stricter lockdown from next Wedne...

AstraZeneca Will Look With Russians At Combining Vaccines

11Dec

By Alan LorenzNo Comments

Russia, News

AstraZeneca Will Look With Russians At Combining Vaccines

The British-Swedish pharmaceutical company AstraZeneca will investigate whether the corona vaccine, developed together with the University of Oxford, can be combined with the Russian Sputnik V vaccine. AstraZeneca is entering into a collaboration with the Gamaleja Institute, which developed the Russian vaccine. The Sputnik V corona vaccine is more than 90 percent effective, according to the developers, while that of AstraZeneca has an effectiveness of more than 70 percent. This may also be increased to 90 percent through a combination of doses, but this is still being investigated. The developers of the Russian vaccine had already proposed on Twitter last month to combine the two vaccines. Both the Oxford vaccine and the Russian vaccine are based on a harmless virus to instruct...

10Dec

By Alan LorenzNo Comments

News

Moderna Tests Corona Vaccine on Teens

Pharmaceutical company Moderna is now also testing its corona vaccine on teenagers. About 3,000 American youngsters between the ages of 12 and 18 will receive the vaccine or a placebo soon. The first participants in the study have now been vaccinated. The participating young people are healthy and will be followed for a year. However, the first results should be available in the spring of next year, which could allow Moderna's vaccine to be approved for use in teens before the start of the next school year. Moderna CEO Stéphane Bancel says his company has gained confidence from the preliminary results of the tests on adults. It showed that the vaccine is safe and very effective. "This study in young people will help us determine how safe and effective our vaccine is in this cru...

Hungary and Poland Have Accepted A Compromise Proposal on the EU Budget

9Dec

By Alan LorenzNo Comments

Europe, Hungary, News, Poland

Hungary and Poland Have Accepted A Compromise Proposal on the EU Budget

Hungary and Poland have accepted a compromise proposal on the EU budget and the Corona Recovery Fund with some reserve. Rotating EU president Germany has been trying to find a way out of the stalemate on this for some time. The two countries are holding back approval so far because the plans provide that violators could lose their EU subsidies if they violate the rule of law. The content of the compromise has not been disclosed. It is first presented to the Netherlands and other countries that do not want the water to be compromised when it comes to respect for the rule of law. According to a Polish government official, the goal is to reach an agreement before the heads of government meet in Brussels on Thursday afternoon for their December summit. An earlier compromise proposa...

The US and China Clash Again Over Hong Kong

8Dec

By Alan LorenzNo Comments

News, China, Hong Kong, US

The US and China Clash Again Over Hong Kong

The United States is again on a collision course with China over Hong Kong. Washington imposed sanctions on 14 Chinese officials after opposition members in that Chinese metropolis were expelled from parliament. Beijing then warned on Tuesday that it would take countermeasures. The US punitive action was directed against prominent members of the Standing Committee of the National People's Congress, a significant Chinese governing body. The relationship between Washington and Beijing is, therefore coming under further pressure in the final months of Donald Trump's presidency. China has long conflicted with Western countries about Hong Kong. That former British crown colony has been part of China again since 1997. The metropolis still has its own parliament and legal system. This...

A Standstill of Corona Infections Worries Belgian Virologists

7Dec

By Alan LorenzNo Comments

Belgium, Europe, News

A Standstill of Corona Infections Worries Belgian Virologists

The decline in the number of Belgians contracting the coronavirus appears to be halting. Some more corona patients were even admitted to the hospital. "That is a bit worrisome," says virologist Steven Van Gucht, who speaks on behalf of the Belgian corona crisis centre. Van Gucht sees "still a slight decrease" in the number of corona infections and hospital admissions. "But if we look at the last three days like this, we can almost speak of a stabilization", certainly in Flanders and the province of Luxembourg. It is still guesswork what exactly is going on, the virologist said at a new press conference from the crisis centre. He does not rule out that Belgians who go to work or shop across the border in the Netherlands and Luxembourg, where the coronavirus is currently more pre...

Billion Dollar Payout Russia to Yukos Owners Must Continue

4Dec

By Alan LorenzNo Comments

Russia, News

Billion Dollar Payout Russia to Yukos Owners Must Continue

Former shareholders of the Russian oil company Yukos may continue to claim 57 billion dollars in damages from Russia. The Russian state asked the Supreme Court to suspend the payment of that compensation as long as an appeal case is still pending with the highest judicial body in the Netherlands. That request was denied. Yukos was one of Russia's largest oil and gas companies. The company was nationalized at the beginning of this century after the arrest and conviction of its owner Mikhail Khodorkovsky, who went behind bars for fraud and large-scale tax evasion. After the nationalization of the company, it was sold in parts to competitors. The former shareholders were left empty-handed. In an arbitration case, which took place in The Hague, the Russian government was ordered in...

US Congress Agrees to Stricter Due Diligence on Chinese Firms

3Dec

By Alan LorenzNo Comments

Business, China, News, US

US Congress Agrees to Stricter Due Diligence on Chinese Firms

Chinese companies listed in the United States, such as Baidu and Alibaba, may lose that listing if US regulators are denied access to accounting. After the Senate, the House of Representatives has also agreed to tighten the rules. President Donald Trump has yet to sign the bill. The legislation provides for an adjustment period. Penalties are only imposed if the rules are not complied with for three years. With the law, Washington is intensifying its investigation into ties that Chinese companies have with Beijing. Senator John Kennedy emphasized while discussing the proposal that it is dangerous that Chinese companies are allowed to ignore the rules that American companies must comply with. In addition to the obligation to have the books checked, the US also wants to know whet...

Activist Wong Sentenced to Prison for Hong Kong Protest

2Dec

By Alan LorenzNo Comments

Hong Kong, News

Activist Wong Sentenced to Prison for Hong Kong Protest

A Hong Kong court has sentenced noted activist Joshua Wong and two fellow dissidents to prison for leading an illegal protest against the government. Wong was sentenced to 13.5 months in prison. His fellow activists Agnes Chow and Ivan Lam were sentenced to 10 months and 7 months in prison respectively. Wong, along with the two other activists, was on trial for their involvement in last year's protests against the Hong Kong government. Shortly before the trial began, Wong had already announced that he would plead guilty.