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https://www.nationthailand.com/international/40014785

Germany will stop importing oil from Russia by the end of the year, said German Foreign Minister Annalena Baerbock after a meeting with her Baltic counterparts on Wednesday (April 20).

“I,therefore, say here clearly and unequivocally yes, Germany is also completely phasing out Russian energy imports,” said Baerbock.

“We will halve oil by the summer and will be at 0 by the end of the year, and then gas will follow, in a joint European roadmap, because our joint exit, the complete exit of the European Union, is our common strength.”

Her Latvian counterpart said Europe must further reduce its trade with Russia following the invasion of Ukraine, including energy imports.

“We understand that Russia’s aggressive politics will not disappear, even after the active war phase in Ukraine,” Edgars Rinkevics told a joint news conference in Riga.

“We have to re-focus our economy from cooperation with Russia to complete isolation. Whether it’s energy or other areas,” Rinkevics added.

Lithuanian Foreign Minister Gabrielius Landsbergis said that as Russia has shown “no regard” for civilian lives during this crisis, NATO must prepare and make all necessary means available to defend every inch of Baltic territory.

Foreign Minister Eva-Maria Liimets said Estonia supported a possible enlargement of the EU that would include Ukraine, North Macedonia and Albania in the near future.

Published : April 21, 2022

By : Reuters

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Britain’s Westminster Magistrate’s Court issued a formal order on Wednesday to extradite WikiLeaks founder Julian Assange to the United States to face espionage charges.

The decision on whether to approve the extradition now rests with British Home Secretary Priti Patel, although Assange’s lawyers may still appeal within 14 days against any decision that approves the extradition.

Last month, Britain’s Supreme Court denied Assange permission to appeal against a High Court decision to extradite him to the United States.

Assange, 50, is wanted in the United States on allegations of disclosing national defence information following WikiLeaks’s publication of hundreds of thousands of leaked military documents relating to the Afghanistan and Iraq wars a decade ago, which included video footage from an Apache helicopter documenting the U.S. military gunning down Reuters journalists and children in Baghdad’s streets in 2007.

He has been held at South London’s high-security Belmarsh Prison since 2019. He married his long-term partner Stella Moris, a lawyer, in the prison last month.

Lawyers for the United States said earlier that Assange would be allowed to transfer to Australia, his home country, to serve any prison sentence he may be given.

Published : April 21, 2022

By : Reuters

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https://www.nationthailand.com/international/40014781

A walkout by officials from the United States, Britain and Canada over Russia’s participation in a meeting of officials from the world’s 20 biggest economies did not derail the meeting’s focus on addressing headwinds confronting global growth, the body’s chair said on Wednesday (April 20).

The top finance officials walked out of the G20 meeting as Russian representatives spoke, exposing deepening divisions over Russia’s continued presence in the body.

Ukrainian officials, in Washington seeking billions of dollars of additional funding, also walked out of the meeting, a source familiar with the meeting said.

Indonesia Finance Minister Sri Mulyani Indrawati, who chaired the gathering in Washington, said the walkout during the Group of 20 finance ministers and central bankers meeting was “not a total surprise” and was not disruptive to the group’s wider discussion.

“I am confident this will not erode cooperation or the importance of the G20 forum,” Indrawati said.

Indrawati acknowledged the body faced unprecedented challenges but called for cooperation to overcome headwinds slowing global growth.

“This is an extraordinary situation,” Indrawati told reporters after the daylong meeting. “It’s not business as usual, a very dynamic and challenging one.”

The G20 includes Western countries that have accused Moscow of war crimes in Ukraine, as well as China, India, Indonesia and South Africa which have not joined Western-led sanctions against Russia over the conflict.

Indrawati said many countries spoke out against the war at the meeting, although she did not identify them.

Over five million Ukrainians have fled abroad since Russia invaded on Feb. 24, the biggest attack on a European state since 1945.

The United States accuses Russia of committing war crimes in what Moscow calls a “special military operation”. Russia denies the allegations.

Published : April 21, 2022

By : Reuters

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https://www.nationthailand.com/international/40014780

Independence leader and Nobel laureate Jose Ramos-Horta declared victory in East Timor’s presidential election on Thursday (April 21), saying he had secured “overwhelming” support and would now work to foster dialogue and unity.

“Ihave received this mandate from our people, from the nation, in an overwhelming demonstration of our people’s commitment to democracy,” he told reporters.

With 100% of the votes counted, Ramos-Horta had a strong lead with 62.09% of the votes, while Lu Olo had 37.91%, according to data from the election administration agency.

He was a co-recipient of the Nobel Prize in 1996 for his efforts to bring a peaceful resolution to a guerrilla war in East Timor against Indonesia’s occupation of the former Portuguese colony. Ramos-Horta is one of East Timor’s best-known political figures and served as president between 2007 and 2012 when he survived the assassination attempt by rebel gunmen.

Ramos-Horta is expected to be sworn in on May 20, the 20th anniversary of East Timor’s restoration of independence.

Published : April 21, 2022

By : Reuters

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https://www.nationthailand.com/international/40014750

Germany will continue to support Ukraine militarily although it has practically maxed out the weapons it can deliver from its stocks and is instead working with its armaments industry and other nations to send more, Chancellor Olaf Scholz said on Tuesday.

Scholz is facing growing frustration at home as well as abroad with what critics say is his lack of leadership in Ukraine. Even members of the junior partners in his three-way coalition are now openly accusing him of dithering on Ukrainian pleas to send it more heavy weapons.

Speaking after participating in a call with Western allies including U.S. President Joe Biden, Scholz said they were coordinating more weapons deliveries to Ukraine to ensure it could fend off Russia’s invasion.

Asked however if Germany would send Leopard tanks, he said the Western allies – not just Berlin – agreed it made sense to send Ukraine arms it could immediately deploy. As such, the allies would enable East European countries to hand over Soviet weapons it was familiar with by committing to replacing them, he said.

Moreover, Berlin was liaising between German military equipment makers and Ukraine to deliver the country weapons like anti-tank and air defence weapons.

Scholz must balance pressure from the Greens and Free Democrats to step up arms supplies to Ukraine with some reticence among elements of his Social Democrats (SPD), which long advocated Western rapprochement with Russia before the war in Ukraine.

In a poll by Forsa published on Tuesday by broadcasters RTL and NTV, some 52% were unsatisfied with Scholz’s work compared to just 31% and 34% for Foreign Minister Annalena Baerbock and Economy Minister Robert Habeck, both from the Greens.

Published : April 20, 2022

By : Reuters

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https://www.nationthailand.com/international/40014741

An animal park in Bavaria that had named one of its wild boars Putin due to its Russian genetic heritage held a ceremony on Tuesday (April 19) to rechristen the hairy hog with a traditional southern German name in the light of Russia’s invasion of Ukraine.

Eckard Mickish, operator of the park just outside the town of Mehlmeisel said he named the boar after Russian President Vladimir Putin three years ago upon its arrival given it had been bred from pure-race boar from Russia.

At nearly 200 kg, the hog weighed around three times as much as those typically found in Germany, he said.

But lately, whenever Mickish had to do a roll call of the boar for visitors, a shiver went down his spine when mentioning Putin, given the war unfolding.

He also worried about how Ukrainian visitors would feel if they had to keep hearing the name of the Russian president.

Mickish decided that no pig deserved this name and turned to the park’s social media channels to look for a new name.

Of 2700 name proposals, Eberhofer – the name of a policeman from a popular Bavarian book series – won the largest backing and so the boar was rechristened on Tuesday in a ceremony that included large marzipan and biscuit swine cake.

Eberhofer himself stayed out of the limelight behind the trees for most of the ceremony, leaving most of the cake to his fellow swine.

Published : April 20, 2022

By : Reuters

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https://www.nationthailand.com/international/40014738

 Johnson & Johnson on Tuesday (April 19) said it could no longer provide a forecast for sales of its COVID-19 vaccine, as vaccine hesitancy in low-income countries paired with already low demand in higher-income nations has led to a glut of supply.

The company had earlier predicted as much as $3.5 billion in 2022 sales from the single-dose vaccine, once touted as an important tool for vaccinating hard-to-reach areas.

J&J also cut both ends of its full-year profit forecast by 25 cents and now expects to earn $10.15 to $10.35 per share. But it blamed the move on currency fluctuations rather than fundamental business issues and raised its dividend by 6.6%, and shares rose about 4%.

Analysts said J&J remains a safe bet within the healthcare sector and that raising the dividend provided predictable income for investors despite vaccine sales woes.

The J&J shot has been hurt by links to rare but potentially deadly blood clots, manufacturing issues and concerns about efficacy. It accounts for about 3% of all doses administered in the United States, and roughly 2% of doses in Europe.

Company executives said lack of acceptance in lower-income countries also was hurting vaccine sales. According to the World Health Organization, poorer countries have asked for insufficient doses to meet their goal of vaccinating at least 70% of their populations by the middle of the year.

The vaccine, which is sold at a not-for-profit price, brought in $457 million in the first quarter. J&J recorded vaccine sales of $2.39 billion last year.

Pfizer has forecast $32 billion in 2022 sales from its COVID vaccine developed with BioNTech SE, while Moderna has forecast $21 billion for its shot this year.

J&J said its medical devices unit should recover this year after pandemic delays in non-urgent surgeries hit sales last year, and it expects above-market growth in its large pharmaceuticals business in 2022, despite falling short of Wall Street estimates in the first quarter.

The company reported pharmaceutical sales of $12.87 billion, well shy of forecasts for $13.6 billion, due in part to low vaccine sales.

Excluding items, J&J earned $2.67 per share for the quarter, beating analysts’ expectations by 11 cents, according to Refinitiv.

Published : April 20, 2022

By : Reuters

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https://www.nationthailand.com/international/40014737

The Biden administration will no longer enforce a U.S. mask mandate on public transportation, but at Washington, D.C.’s Ronald Reagan National Airport, the majority of passengers were wearing masks.

The Biden administration will no longer enforce a U.S. mask mandate on public transportation, after a federal judge in Florida on Monday ruled that the 14-month-old directive was unlawful, overturning a key White House effort to reduce the spread of COVID-19.

Soon after the announcement, all major carriers including American Airlines, United Airlines and Delta Air Lines, as well as national train line Amtrak relaxed the restrictions effective immediately.

On Tuesday (April 19) at Washington, D.C.’s Ronald Reagan National Airport, the majority of passengers were wearing masks.

“I think the people who say and it’s infringing on their rights, well, they have a right to die if they want to, but I choose not to do that just yet,” said Robert Gerard, a wildlife photographer who was set to board a six-hour flight to Anchorage.

Last week, U.S. health officials had extended the mandate to May 3 requiring travellers to wear masks on planes, trains, and in taxis, ride-share vehicles or transit hubs, saying they needed time to assess the impact of a recent rise in COVID-19 cases caused by the airborne coronavirus.

Industry groups and Republican lawmakers baulked and wanted the administration to end the 14-month-old mask mandate permanently.

The ruling by U.S. District Judge Kathryn Kimball Mizelle, an appointee of President Donald Trump, came in a lawsuit filed last year in Tampa, Florida, by a group called the Health Freedom Defense Fund. It follows a string of rulings against Biden administration directives to fight the infectious disease that has killed nearly one million Americans, including vaccine or test mandates for employers.

Judge Mizelle said the U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) had exceeded its authority with the mandate, had not sought public comment and did not adequately explain its decisions.

A U.S. administration official said while the agencies were assessing potential next steps, the court’s decision meant CDC’s public transportation masking order was no longer in effect. The administration could still opt to appeal the order or seek an emergency delay in the order’s enforcement.

Published : April 20, 2022

By : Reuters

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https://www.nationthailand.com/international/40014722

“There will now be an important moment during this special operation,” Lavrov said.

The second phase of Russia’s special military operation in Ukraine has begun, Russian Foreign Minister Sergei Lavrov said Tuesday.
 

The operation in eastern Ukraine is aimed at “completely liberating” the populations of Donetsk and Lugansk, Lavrov said during an interview with India Today.

“This operation will continue, the next phase of this operation has now begun. There will now be an important moment during this special operation,” he added.

Also on Tuesday, the Ukrinform news agency reported that up to 30 percent of Ukraine’s infrastructure was damaged as the result of the conflict with Russia, which started on Feb. 24.

The hostilities have either destroyed or damaged 300 bridges and more than 8,000 km of roads, said Ukrinform, quoting Ukrainian Infrastructure Minister Oleksandr Kubrakov.

The Ukrainian government estimated that the cost of direct damage to the country’s infrastructure caused by the conflict could reach 100 billion U.S. dollars, added Kubrakov.

Published : April 20, 2022

By : Xinhua

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The new strain, called BA.2.12.1, makes up about a fifth of new COVID-19 cases in the United States, according to data released Tuesday by the CDC.

 While Omicron subvariant BA.2 remains the dominant strain in the United States, a new subvariant is gaining its foothold in the country, according to the latest data of the U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC).

The new strain, called BA.2.12.1, makes up about a fifth of new COVID-19 cases in the country, according to data released Tuesday by the CDC.

The data increased from 11.4 percent a week before, and 6.9 percent two weeks prior, CDC data showed.

The majority of COVID-19 cases in the United States — around 75 percent — are still caused by BA.2., which has become the country’s dominant variant since late March.

But BA.2.12.1, along with another subvariant of Omicron, called BA.2.12, contributed to the recent spike in COVID-19 cases in New York State, according to the State Department of Health.

Both variants are sub-lineages of BA.2, which now accounts for 80.6 percent of COVID-19 infections in New York. The subvariants have been estimated to have a 23 percent to 27 percent growth advantage above the original BA.2 variant, said the New York State Department of Health.

A traveler walks through a terminal at Ronald Reagan Washington National Airport in Arlington, Virginia, the United States, April 14, 2022. (Photo by Ting Shen/Xinhua)

The United States is now averaging about 35,000 new infections daily, up 19 percent from the previous week and 42 percent from two weeks prior, CDC data show.

Meanwhile, about 370 new deaths and 1,400 new hospitalizations were reported across the country every day.

Health experts said new COVID-19 cases are increasingly undercounted with the rise of at-home testing.

Less than a week after the CDC extended mask requirement on airplanes, trains, buses and other public transportation to prevent the surge in COVID-19 cases, federal judge in Florida struck down the mask mandate on Monday.

Several airlines have dropped their mask rule for domestic flights after the federal judge voided the mandate.

Pulling back on the travel mask requirement at this moment is “very, very concerning,” Saskia Popescu, an infectious disease epidemiologist and assistant professor at George Mason University, told The New York Times.

“We’re definitely starting to see a trend up in cases,” she said. “My concern is that we may see what happened in the U.K., where they drastically pulled back restrictions and saw a significant surge, and this will contribute to rising numbers.”  

Published : April 20, 2022

By : Xinhua