LONDON – Prime Minister Boris Johnson said Monday that Britain had registered its first death of a patient with the omicron variant, while U.K. health officials warned that the new version of the coronavirus was spreading at jaw-dropping speed.

“Ithink the idea that this is somehow a milder version of the virus, that’s something we need to set on one side and just recognize the sheer pace at which it accelerates through the population,” Johnson told reporters during a visit to a vaccination clinic in London. He urged people to quickly increase their protection with a booster shot.

Long lines formed outside vaccination clinics on Monday, with people waiting to get a first, second or third dose.

The prime minister’s office did not immediately offer any details about the person who died – age, vaccination status or any underlying conditions.

It’s possible that this death is the first in the world to be officially tied to the new variant, though that in itself is of limited significance. There may have been others that weren’t genetically sequenced to determine the variant involved.

The U.K. Health Security Agency said Monday there were 10 patients in hospitals across England, aged 18 to 85, diagnosed with omicron on or before admission, with the majority having received two doses of coronavirus vaccine.

Hospital admissions lag infections, and officials here worry that a coming crush of patients could overwhelm the National Health Service. The new strain is now spreading faster in Britain than it has in South Africa, where the first cases were detected. And, unlike South Africa, Britain was already dealing with a surge of delta variant cases.

Early reports from South Africa suggest that omicron may be milder on average than the delta variant it is competing with. But even a small portion of severe cases among a huge number of infections could put strain British hospitals.

Health Secretary Sajid Javid said Monday that hospitalizations and deaths are forecast to “dramatically increase” in the coming weeks.

Speaking to lawmakers in the House of Commons on Monday afternoon, he said omicron would become the dominant variant in London in the next 48 hours. It already represented 20 percent of all new cases in England, with cases doubling every two to three days.

“No variant of covid-19 has spread this fast,” Javid said in Parliament.

Earlier, he called the growth rate “phenomenal.”

On Saturday, Britain reported 633 new confirmed cases of omicron; on Sunday, 1,239; and on Monday, another 1,576, for a total of 4,713 confirmed cases of the variant in the country.

Scientists suspect there are in reality 10,000s of new but unreported infections a day.

“The best thing we can do is all get our boosters,” Johnson said.

He announced in a televised address on Sunday that Britain would try to get booster shots to everyone age 18 and over by New Year’s Day, bringing forward an earlier deadline by a month.

“A tidal wave of omicron is coming,” Johnson warned. “And I’m afraid it is now clear that two dose of vaccine are simply not enough to give the level of protection we all need.”

To reach that target, the NHS will need to carry out about a million vaccinations a day, double what it had been doing. The government plans to deploy 42 medical teams from the military to assist. General practitioners in the National Health Service are also being told to cancel other nonessential appointments if necessary to meet the booster deadline.

There’s still much that the world doesn’t know about omicron, including just how effective vaccines – and boosters – might be against it. British scientists say answers are likely to come fast, over the next few weeks, as infections spread and real-world studies continue.

On Friday, the U.K. Health Security Agency reported that two doses of either AstraZeneca or Pfizer vaccines offered poor protection against symptomatic infection by omicron.

The primary two doses of the Pfizer vaccine gave 30 to 40 percent protection against symptomatic illness from 25 weeks after second dose. AstraZeneca provided even less protection, though the sample size of the study was so small that scientists are cautious.

The good news: The health services agency said preliminary studies found that a third, booster jab of Pfizer would likely raise protection from omicron considerably – to between 70 and 75 percent.

On Monday, scientists reported research that showed a steep drop-off in the neutralizing antibody response to the omicron variant. The laboratory studies were carried out with blood samples from people vaccinated with the two doses of either AstraZeneca or Pfizer. The studies did not examine the response after a third booster shot. That research is coming soon.

Teresa Lambe, a co-author of the study and professor at the Jenner Institute at the University of Oxford, said neutralizing antibodies might not tell the whole story and that other immune responses against omicron may be stimulated by the vaccines.

Lambe said early studies by others also suggested that a booster dose of existing vaccines may be effective against omicron.

She urged people to get a third shot.

At one vaccination clinic in Streatham, in southwest London, more than 100 people were still waiting in line as night fell – the winter sun sets here around 4 p.m. on Monday.

Sabrina Singh, 44, a child-care worker, said she wasn’t influenced by Johnson’s plea – “in my opinion, he talks rubbish” – but was encouraged to get a booster shot by her eldest daughter, who is recovering from covid after being sick for two weeks.

“She is concerned about me because I’m a heavy smoker,” Singh said. “I think all of this,” she added, waving at a line of people mostly under 45, “is so we can have normal Christmas this year. Or as normal as possible. I think that’s why everyone is rushing.”

Rob Flanagan, 33, a graphic designer, who had finally made it to the front of the queue after two hours, said he had come because “this was first day I was eligible, I think that’s everyone here really. Everyone is looking quite young.”

Flanagan said he started to alter his behavior in recent weeks, as the number of variant cases started to climb sharply. “I’m working from home, reducing socializing, concerned about public transport, definitely feeling worried about being out and about, and will wear a mask on the street as opposed to just on a bus or supermarket,” he said.

Others who tried to book appointments via the NHS website were told to try again later. The government confirmed that the site crashed at one point on Monday.

Johnson is facing another rough week. In addition to the coronavirus surge, he has been immersed in a scandal about several alleged Christmas parties at Downing Street during a strick lockdown last year.

Rebels from his own Conservative Party have threatened to vote against new stricter public health measures. They are opposed to anything that smacks of a fourth “lockdown,” as well as mandatory vaccination and use of “vaccine passports.”

Starting this week, people are being encouraged to work from home, wear face masks in most indoor venues and show proof of vaccination or a negative test for entrance into places with large crowds. The government also said daily testing would replace quarantines for those who come into contact with someone who has tested positive.

Normally, rapid coronavirus tests can be ordered at no charge on a government website. But on Monday, the government website read: “Sorry, there are no more home test kits available right now.”

Published : December 14, 2021

By : The Washington Post

#SootinClaimon.Com : ขอบคุณแหล่งข้อมูล : หนังสือพิมพ์ The Nation.

https://www.nationthailand.com/international/40009930

WASHINGTON – Vice President Kamala Harris on Monday announced new investment commitments from an array of private companies to help address the root causes of migration from Central America, aiding her efforts on a daunting task on which she has been longing to show progress.

With the pledges from companies including PepsiCo, Mastercard and Cargill, Harris’s office said such entities have now committed to invest $1.2 billion in the poverty-stricken and violent region since she issued a “call to action” for private-sector help in May.

The announcement comes amid staff departures and other reports of turmoil in Harris’s office. Her portfolio includes several challenging assignments, including a charge from President Joe Biden to address the root causes of migration at the southern border during a large spike in illegal crossings.

“Six months ago, we had a commitment of $750 million. Today we have a commitment of over 1.2 billion,” Harris said in remarks Monday afternoon at a meeting with chief executive officers.

She added, “This is not about us coming in and telling anyone what they should do. It is about being partners and assisting and helping to facilitate the natural desire of the people in these nations. This is important work. This is good work. I think this reflects the best of who we are as the United States recognizing our responsibility as neighbors to these countries in the Western Hemisphere.”

Ahead of the meeting, Harris’s office detailed new investments from seven companies.

It said, for example, that PepsiCo, the global food and beverage company, would invest $190 million in northern Central America through 2025, including improvements to its manufacturing plans in the region. The company already has a long-standing presence in Guatemala, El Salvador and Honduras, including a regional manufacturing hub in Guatemala.

Harris’s office also said that Cargill, a global food corporation, would invest an additional $150 million in the region with the aim of improving “farmer livelihoods and building economic resilience” in Honduras, Guatemala and El Salvador.

Meanwhile, Parkdale Mills, one of the largest providers of spun yarns and cotton consumer products in the world, plans to spend $150 million to build a new yarn spinning facility in Honduras, according to Harris’s office.

Other investments are being announced by CARE International, Grupo Mariposa, Parkdale Mills, JDE Peet’s and PriceSmart.

In addition, three other companies that announced initial investments in May – Mastercard, Microsoft and Nespresso – are announcing further plans in the region.

Published : December 14, 2021

By : The Washington Post

#SootinClaimon.Com : ขอบคุณแหล่งข้อมูล : หนังสือพิมพ์ The Nation.

https://www.nationthailand.com/international/40009912

Buzkashi, meaning “goat grabbing”, is a centuries-old traditional game in Afghanistan, in which skilled horse riders of rival teams compete to take the slaughtered goat or calf and throw it in a circle fixed on the Buzkashi ground.

Afghan horse riders compete for a goat during a Buzkashi match in Mazar-i-Sharif, capital of Balkh province, Afghanistan, Dec. 10, 2021. (Photo by Kawa Basharat/Xinhua)

Afghan horse riders compete for a goat during a Buzkashi match in Mazar-i-Sharif, capital of Balkh province, Afghanistan, Dec. 10, 2021. (Photo by Kawa Basharat/Xinhua)

Afghan horse riders compete for a goat during a Buzkashi match in Mazar-i-Sharif, capital of Balkh province, Afghanistan, Dec. 10, 2021. (Photo by Kawa Basharat/Xinhua)

Afghan horse riders compete for a goat during a Buzkashi match in Mazar-i-Sharif, capital of Balkh province, Afghanistan, Dec. 10, 2021. (Photo by Kawa Basharat/Xinhua)

Afghan horse riders compete for a goat during a Buzkashi match in Mazar-i-Sharif, capital of Balkh province, Afghanistan, Dec. 10, 2021. (Photo by Kawa Basharat/Xinhua)

Afghan horse riders compete for a goat during a Buzkashi match in Mazar-i-Sharif, capital of Balkh province, Afghanistan, Dec. 10, 2021. (Photo by Kawa Basharat/Xinhua)

Afghan horse riders compete for a goat during a Buzkashi match in Mazar-i-Sharif, capital of Balkh province, Afghanistan, Dec. 10, 2021. (Photo by Kawa Basharat/Xinhua)

Published : December 13, 2021

By : Xinhua

#SootinClaimon.Com : ขอบคุณแหล่งข้อมูล : หนังสือพิมพ์ The Nation.

https://www.nationthailand.com/international/40009910

Though establishing connections between climate change and tornadoes is difficult, the correlation between El Nino/La Nina and tornadoes is strong — La Nina seasons tend to have increased tornado activity in the United States, and it is worth noting that this country is currently experiencing La Nina, which is expected to last into spring of next year.

Powerful storms like the ones that tore through parts of the central United States this weekend are the “new normal” in an era of climate change, and the severity, duration and magnitude of the storms this late in the year were “unprecedented,” Deanne Criswell, administrator of the U.S. Federal Emergency Management Agency (FEMA), told CNN on Sunday.

“This is going to be our new normal,” said Criswell. “The effects we are seeing of climate change are the crisis of our generation … We’re taking a lot of efforts at FEMA to work with communities to help reduce the impacts that we’re seeing from these severe weather events and help to develop systemwide projects that can help protect communities.”

Meanwhile, CNN said in its report that “scientific research on the role that climate change is playing in the formation and intensity of tornadoes is not as robust as for other types of extreme weather like droughts, floods and even hurricanes. The short and small scale of tornadoes, along with an extremely spotty and unreliable historical record for them, makes assessing their relationships to long-term, human-caused climate change very difficult.”

Though establishing connections between climate change and tornadoes is difficult, the correlation between El Nino/La Nina and tornadoes is strong — La Nina seasons tend to have increased tornado activity in the United States, and it is worth noting that this country is currently experiencing La Nina, which is expected to last into spring of next year, it added.

Photo taken on Dec. 11, 2021 shows houses damaged in tornadoes in Mayfield, Kentucky, the United States. (Photo by Caromirna Sanchez/Xinhua)

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EMERGENCY DECLARATION

“The vicious centerpiece (of the weekend tornadoes) was a monster supercell that carved an hours-long, 250-mile path from eastern Arkansas to western Kentucky … A powerful storm system set up the chaos as it swept from the Rockies toward Canada, triggering high winds over large areas of the Mid-South, Midwest and Great Lakes,” reported The Washington Post (WP).

On Sunday, rescuers in the middle of the United States resumed search operations for victims of a deadly tornado outbreak that left dozens of people dead and flattened entire communities when it tore through six states late Friday, including Arkansas, Illinois, Kentucky, Mississippi, Missouri and Tennessee.

U.S. Homeland Security Secretary Alejandro Mayorkas said that he is heading to Kentucky on Sunday to meet with the governor and local officials and assess the damage caused by the storms. “I am on my way to Kentucky with @FEMA_Deanne to meet with @GovAndyBeshear, state, and local officials,” he tweeted.

U.S. President Joe Biden signed an emergency declaration for Kentucky on Saturday, opening the door for the FEMA and other federal entities to coordinate disaster relief efforts. “Whatever is needed, the federal government is going to find a way to supply it,” Biden said on Saturday in Delaware.

Photo taken on Dec. 11, 2021 shows a vehicle damaged in tornadoes in Mayfield, Kentucky, the United States. (Photo by Caromirna Sanchez/Xinhua)

HARDEST HIT

Kentucky Governor Andy Beshear confirmed that the tornadoes that tore a 200-mile gash across his state and leveled homes and businesses left “devastation like none of us have ever seen before,” telling CBS’s “Face the Nation” on Sunday that “this tornado didn’t discriminate against anybody in its path, even if they were trying to be safe.”

Mayfield, Kentucky, was one of the hardest hit communities, with satellite photos showing a swath of destruction, including at a candle factory that was completely flattened. More than 100 workers were in the factory when the tornado struck, and 40 of them had been rescued as of Saturday.

The official number of confirmed deaths from the tornadoes and severe storms stood at 25 Sunday morning, with Kentucky suffering the most deaths, but Beshear estimated the actual death toll in his state would exceed 80 and could rise to more than 100 as crews continue sifting through the wreckage.

According to WP, over 100 people are feared to have been killed after rare winter tornadoes ripped through parts of the South and the Midwest late Friday and early Saturday. Thousands of people woke up to power and water outages on Sunday, as rescue work goes on to determine the exact number of deaths.

Published : December 13, 2021

By : Xinhua

#SootinClaimon.Com : ขอบคุณแหล่งข้อมูล : หนังสือพิมพ์ The Nation.

https://www.nationthailand.com/international/40009909

Another 1,239 Omicron cases have been found in Britain, the biggest daily increase since the variant was detected in the country, taking the total cases detected in Britain to 3,137.

Britain’s COVID-19 alert level has been raised from Level 3 to Level 4 “in light of the rapid increase in Omicron cases,” British chief medical officers said in a joint statement Sunday.

In the statement, the four chief medical officers and the National Health Service (NHS) England national medical director said the emergence of Omicron “adds additional and rapidly increasing risk to the public and healthcare services.”

“Early evidence shows that Omicron is spreading much faster than Delta and that vaccine protection against symptomatic disease from Omicron is reduced,” said the statement.

The statement suggested people should continue to “take sensible precautions including ventilating rooms, using face coverings, testing regularly and isolating when symptomatic.”

A passenger wearing a face mask is seen on a bus in London, Britain, on Dec. 9, 2021. (Photo by Stephen Chung/Xinhua)

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Level 4 means the virus is “in general circulation” and “transmission is high and direct COVID-19 pressure on healthcare services is widespread and substantial or rising.”

Another 1,239 Omicron cases have been found in Britain, the biggest daily increase since the COVID-19 variant was detected in the country, taking the total cases found in the country to 3,137, the UK health security agency confirmed Sunday.

Britain reported 48,854 new COVID-19 cases, bringing the total in the country to 10,819,515, according to official figures released Sunday. The country also reported a further 52 COVID-related deaths, taking the national death toll to 146,439.

People walk on the street in London, Britain, on Dec. 9, 2021. (Photo by Stephen Chung/Xinhua)

More than 89 percent of people aged 12 and over in Britain have had their first vaccine dose, and over 81 percent have received both, according to the latest figures. Some 40 percent have received their booster jab, or the third dose.

Published : December 13, 2021

By : Xinhua

#SootinClaimon.Com : ขอบคุณแหล่งข้อมูล : หนังสือพิมพ์ The Nation.

https://www.nationthailand.com/international/40009907

“The bodies were transferred to the Sucua morgue,” it said, adding that the 25 injured people, including minors and adults, were taken to various local hospitals.

At least 18 people were killed and 25 others injured in a passenger bus accident in the Sucua canton of the Amazonian province of Morona Santiago in southern Ecuador, the Integrated Security Service ECU 911 reported Sunday.

The accident occurred on Saturday night in Huambi, when the bus covering the Macas-Loja route veered off its lane and overturned, the agency said in a statement.

“The bodies were transferred to the Sucua morgue,” it said, adding that the 25 injured people, including minors and adults, were taken to various local hospitals.

Immediate assistance was activated with personnel from various relief institutions and fire department rescue units heading to the scene.

Members of the Traffic Accident Investigation Service and Criminalistics were also on hand to carry out procedures for this type of accident.
 

Published : December 13, 2021

By : Xinhua

#SootinClaimon.Com : ขอบคุณแหล่งข้อมูล : หนังสือพิมพ์ The Nation.

https://www.nationthailand.com/international/40009894

The number of Covid-19 cases crossed 14.39 million across Southeast Asia, with 24,421 new cases reported on Sunday (December 12). New deaths are at 495, bringing accumulated Covid-19 deaths in Asean to 297,354.

Nearly 300,000 doses of Covid-19 vaccines, donated by the Dutch government through the Covax Facility, touched down in Cambodia on December 10, with 600,000 more set to be shipped through the facility in the next week. Ministry of Health said Cambodia also hopes to receive 2.3 million doses from Australia by the end of the year.

More donations are in the pipeline for next year and awaiting confirmation to the ministry and government from the Covax Facility, whereas a considerable share would be used as boosters.

Meanwhile, health experts in Malaysia warned that those who test positive for Covid-19 through self-test kits but are not reporting their cases to the Health Ministry as required by law are making it hard for health authorities to track and assess the pandemic in the country.

Those who fail to report their Covid-19 positive results are considered to have committed an offence under Section 22 of the Prevention and Control of Infectious Diseases Act and risk facing jail of up to two years, a fine, or both.
 

Published : December 13, 2021

By : THE NATION

#SootinClaimon.Com : ขอบคุณแหล่งข้อมูล : หนังสือพิมพ์ The Nation.

https://www.nationthailand.com/international/40009893

LIVERPOOL, England – The Group of Seven leading industrial democracies warned Russia on Sunday of “massive consequences” and “severe cost” if it launches an attack on Ukraine, a day before President Joe Bidens top diplomat for Europe travels to Kyiv and Moscow to address the high-stakes standoff.

The joint statement from G-7 ministers meeting in this northern English city said they are united in their opposition to Russia’s military buildup near the border of Ukraine and called on the Kremlin to de-escalate.

The statement, representing countries with a hawkish outlook on Russia, such as the United States and Britain, and more dovish ones, such as Italy and France, is the latest effort by the Biden administration to rally international support for Ukraine as U.S. intelligence finds that the Kremlin has planned out a potential multi-front offensive in Ukraine involving up to 175,000 troops. Russia has denied having any such plans.

“Any use of force to change borders is strictly prohibited under international law. Russia should be in no doubt that further military aggression against Ukraine would have massive consequences and severe cost in response,” the G-7 statement said, calling on the Kremlin to “de-escalate” and “pursue diplomatic channels.”

Projecting a united front against Russia has been a challenge for the Biden administration, as continental Europe interprets the threat from Russia in different and sometimes conflicting ways.

Last week, when Biden told reporters that the United States would be announcing a meeting between the United States, Russia and a select group of European allies to see if “accommodations” could be made with Moscow to resolve the crisis, it set off alarm bells in Eastern European capitals where a fear persists of Washington negotiating their region’s fate in their absence.

“Western capitals talking directly to Moscow, us not being at the table – this has ominous vibes from our 20th century history,” said a senior Eastern European official, speaking on the condition of anonymity to discuss a sensitive issue.

Senior State Department officials have since clarified that no such announcement of a meeting of the kind Biden described was forthcoming. The White House also scrambled to set up a call on Thursday between Biden and Eastern European officials to provide assurances that nothing would be decided in meetings with Russian officials without their input on matters that affect them.

U.S. and European officials hailed the statement on Sunday as a sign of Western unity.

“What we have shown this weekend is that the world’s largest economies are united. We have sent a powerful signal to our adversaries,” said British Foreign Secretary Liz Truss during a news conference in Liverpool.

The statement, however, does not specify what type of costs Russia would face. The Biden administration has for weeks threatened harsh economic sanctions, but Moscow has worked to insulate its economy against U.S. Treasury Department actions. The most consequential economic penalties would come from U.S. allies with deeper economic ties to Russia, such as Germany, where the all-but-completed Nord Stream 2 pipeline will bring Russian natural gas to Europe.

Berlin, Paris and Rome have been more cautious with imposing economic sanctions on Moscow, to the chagrin of some in Washington, but a senior State Department official said that Western European capitals were increasingly seeing the gravity of the Russian threat.

“I think we’re having more and more convergence every day,” said the official, speaking on the condition of anonymity to discuss sensitive diplomacy.

Asked whether European leaders would be prepared to impose national sanctions should Russia attack Ukraine, the official said: “I’m quite confident if that awful day comes, not only the countries that were in the room today, but a large number of democratic countries will join us in imposing costs.”

William Taylor, a former U.S. ambassador to Ukraine, said he believes that Russian President Vladimir Putin would probably not end up invading Ukraine but that the possibility is strong enough that it should be taken seriously.

“I think it’s 55-45, but 45% chance that there’s a major war in Europe? You have to take it seriously. You have to be prepared. You have to be ready,” Taylor said during a Sunday appearance on ABC’s “This Week.”

Earlier in his appearance, Taylor said an invasion would be “very, very costly” for Russia because of the likelihood of economic sanctions, heavy troop losses and losing a pipeline to Germany.

On Monday, Karen Donfried, assistant secretary of state for European and Eurasian affairs, travels to Ukraine and then Russia for meetings with senior government officials “to discuss Russia’s military buildup and to reinforce the United States’ commitment to Ukraine’s sovereignty, independence, and territorial integrity,” the State Department said in a statement.

In seeking to allay the concerns of Eastern European countries, the State Department official said no major decisions on the future of European security would be decided until Donfried consults with Ukrainian officials in Kyiv.

Published : December 13, 2021

By : The Washington Post

#SootinClaimon.Com : ขอบคุณแหล่งข้อมูล : หนังสือพิมพ์ The Nation.

https://www.nationthailand.com/international/40009889

At least 30 tornadoes swept through U.S. central states of Arkansas, Mississippi, Illinois, Kentucky, Tennessee and Missouri.

Death toll may rise to 100 after at least 30 tornadoes swept through six states overnight in the central parts of the United States, including Arkansas, Mississippi, Illinois, Kentucky, Tennessee and Missouri.

A candle factory in Kentucky has been completely destroyed, local media reported on Saturday.

“There were about 110 people in it (candle factory) at the time that the tornado hit it,” Kentucky Governor Andy Beshear said. “We believe our death toll from this event will exceed 50 Kentuckians and probably end up 70 to 100.”

Photo taken on Dec. 11, 2021 shows a heap of rubble after tornadoes in Mayfield, Kentucky, the United States. (Photo by Caromirna Sanchez/Xinhua)

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Beshear has declared a state of emergency in the area.

Tornadoes also hit a nursing home in Arkansas and took off the roof of an Amazon warehouse in Illinois, causing certain fatalities. Another nursing home and a fire station in Trumann of Tennessee also caused substantial damage.

It was the worst tornado that touched down in northeastern Arkansas and stayed on the ground for about 223 miles into Kentucky, and most likely the longest reported tornado in history, local media reported.

Photo taken on Dec. 11, 2021 shows a tree toppled in tornadoes in Mayfield, Kentucky, the United States. (Photo by Caromirna Sanchez/Xinhua)

According to PowerOutage.US, at least 331,549 utility customers in four states were left without power.

Issuing tornado warning on Friday, the National Weather Service said at least 25 million people were under threat from massive thunderstorm systems.

Published : December 12, 2021

By : Xinhua

#SootinClaimon.Com : ขอบคุณแหล่งข้อมูล : หนังสือพิมพ์ The Nation.

https://www.nationthailand.com/international/40009891

Ambassador Han Zhiqiang delivered a speech on Saturday at the inauguration ceremony of the 16th Chairperson of the Thai-Chinese President Club, stating that the Summit for Democracy by the US is an outright farce.

“During which, the US claimed itself as a world democracy model and preacher, and even invited criminals who had organised street riots for beating, smashing, looting and burning in Hong Kong to speak,” he said.

Ambassador Han said that the US boasts the world’s most advanced medical technology and resources, but its failing response to the Covid-19 pandemic has resulted in more than 800,000 lives claimed there and over 50 million infections caught. The US has been domestically plagued with political polarisation, disparities between rich and poor, severe racial discrimination and frequent gun violence, which the US Administration reveals no competence to deal with.

“The US-launched wars and military operations in the past 20 years in Afghanistan, Iraq, Libya, and Syria have led to the loss of hundreds of thousands of lives and the displacement of tens of millions. The US-instigated colour revolutions in one place and another have caused political turmoil, economic depression and untold sufferings of the people in many developing countries. Now the US has been attempting to contain China’s development out of US hegemonic self-interests by stirring up chaos in Hong Kong and Xinjiang and supporting “Taiwan independence”, which is completely in vain,” he said.

With such a myriad of heinous acts and such notorious state governance, the US self-proclaiming as a model of the world democracy is explicitly and utterly an attempt to deceive the world for a fabricated reputation. In recent years, the US has coined many new expressions for attacking other countries, such as the “failed state” or “evil state”. It now appears that these expressions are the most appropriate to be used for the US itself. 

Ambassador Han also stated that democracy is a common value of the humanity. Ways to realise democracy are multiple and diverse. The kinds of egoistical democracy and hegemony-serving democracy are not true democracy but fake democracy that trample on and blaspheme against true democracy.

The ambassodor pointed out that China has always adhered to an independent foreign policy of peace and promoted the common values of peace, development, fairness, justice, democracy, and freedom for all humanity. The path of peaceful development and promote world peace and development can adhere through China’s own development while striving to forge a sound external environment.

He added that the country has stayed committed to mutual benefit and win-win results, uphold fairness and justice, stand on the right side of the history and the right side of the cause of human progress. China will always be a builder of world peace, a contributor to global development and a defender of the international order.

Source: Han Zhiqiang: Democracy as a Hegemony-serving Tool is the Trampling and Blasphemy of Democracy (china-embassy.org)

Published : December 12, 2021

By : THE NATION