Global Developments and Analysis: Weekly Monitor, 28 December 2020 - 03 January 2021

Economic

EU, China Agree on Terms of Investment Pact Despite U.S. Wariness

The European Union and China agreed in principle on an investment accord after seven years of negotiations that promises to open new Chinese markets for European companies but has sowed concern in Washington. The agreement addresses—at least on paper—longstanding European calls for fairer competition with Chinese companies and improved access to Chinese markets. It commits Beijing to end forced technology transfers and increase transparency over how it subsidizes firms. European officials say they are gaining more than they are giving in the deal, which has won backing from leaders of all 27 EU countries but still needs their governments’ formal approval and will face a vote in the European Parliament. The Europeans also say the pact provides similar advantages to those the U.S. gained when it signed its “phase-one” trade agreement with China, which took effect early this year.Critics of the deal in both the U.S. and Europe say that even if it gives the EU short-term commercial gains, it binds the bloc’s economy more closely to China’s and could help build the increasingly authoritarian country’s economic might just as Western leaders are working to check it. Click here to read... [2]

Manufacturers Want Biden to Boost ‘Buy American’ Practices

President-elect Joe Biden is pledging to use the power of the federal government to buy American goods and jump-start domestic manufacturing. Some companies say rules that are too restrictive could raise their costs and complicate supply chains for items not made in the U.S. Mr. Biden’s “buy American” proposals echo those of previous presidents, including President Trump, who issued executive orders to spur more federal purchases of U.S. goods and sought to use tariffs to disadvantage foreign producers. The results for companies have been uneven, with some benefiting from increased sales and others dealing with higher expenses. Mr. Biden said during his campaign and in a speech after the election that he would tighten “buy American” rules. He has proposed $400 billion in federal spending on infrastructure projects that use American products such as domestically made steel and protective gear for medical workers battling the coronavirus pandemic. He has also proposed that Congress devote an additional $300 billion to research and development of new products. “From autos to our stockpiles, we’re going to buy American,” Mr. Biden said in November. Click here to read... [3]

NYSE begins delisting China’s three largest state-run telecoms groups

The New York Stock Exchange has begun delisting China’s three largest state-run telecom groups to comply with a Trump administration executive order barring US investors from holding stakes in companies suspected of having ties to the Chinese military.The move by the US’s largest exchange follows similar restrictions from index providers and will restrict the Chinese companies’ access to capital from American investors. China Mobile, China Telecom and China Unicom all maintain listings in Hong Kong, which will limit the damage of being removed from the NYSE. State-backed China Mobile, the country’s largest mobile network operator, brought in $107bn in revenue last year. China Telecom had sales of $54bn and China Unicom reported $42bn. The NYSE said the companies had the right to review the decision, with the de-listings set to begin as early as January 7. The US Congress also passed a defence spending bill last month that would force the Pentagon to publish annually a comprehensive directory of companies with alleged Chinese military ties, underlining the growing bipartisan consensus on taking a tougher stance on China. Click here to read... [4]

US increases tariffs on EU products over aircraft subsidies dispute

Donald Trump’s administration has stepped up its long-running trade dispute with the EU over aircraft subsidies, saying it will increase tariffs on aircraft parts and beverages from France and Germany. The move was announced by the Office of the US Trade Representative late on Dec 30 and will apply from January 12 — shortly before Joe Biden is sworn in as US president. The $4bn in tariffs imposed by the EU followed the US targeting of $7.5bn in EU goods from October 2019, which was permitted by the WTO as a penalty for subsidies to European aircraft maker Airbus. The EU tariffs, in turn, were authorised in response to US subsidies benefiting Airbus rival Boeing. Both the Trump administration and the EU have said they want to resolve the dispute, but the two sides have failed to reach an agreement, which will form one of the biggest tests of rapprochement between Washington and Brussels on trade under Mr Biden. The European Commission said it regretted the Trump administration's move, warning that it “unilaterally disrupts the ongoing negotiation between the commission and USTR to find a settlement to the long-lasting aircraft disputes”. Click here to read... [5]

After months of COVID delays, African free trade bloc launches

African countries began officially trading under a new continent-wide free trade area on Dec 31, after months of delays caused by the global coronavirus pandemic. But experts view the New Year’s Day launch as largely symbolic with full implementation of the deal expected to take years. Obstacles – ranging from ubiquitous red tape and poor infrastructure to the entrenched protectionism of some of its members – must be overcome if the bloc is to reach its full potential. Trade under the AfCFTA was meant to be launched on July 1, 2020 but was pushed back after COVID-19 made in-person negotiations impossible.However, the pandemic also gave the process added impetus, said Wamkele Mene, secretary-general of the AfCFTA secretariat. “COVID-19 has demonstrated that Africa is overly reliant on the export of primary commodities, overly reliant on global supply chains,” he said. “When the global supply chains are disrupted, we know that Africa suffers.” Every African country except Eritrea has signed on to the AfCFTA framework agreement, and 34 have ratified it. Click here to read... [6]

US moves against money laundering

A major avenue for global money laundering and tax evasion has been closed off by a new law requiring disclosure of owners of US shell companies used to hide billions of dollars. The Corporate Transparency Act was included in the US defense appropriations bill passed into law by Congress this week, overriding President Donald Trump’s veto. The law forces “beneficial owners” behind shell companies to report their identities to the US Treasury’s Financial Crimes Enforcement Network, or FinCEN. While the law still grants them protection from public knowledge — only the Treasury and law enforcement will be able to access the FinCEN database — transparency advocates say it is a huge step against kleptocrats, organized crime and rich tax evaders who have been able to anonymously wash their suspect wealth through the world’s largest economy. “For years, experts routinely ranked anonymous shell companies ... as the biggest weakness in our anti-money laundering safeguards,” said Ian Gary, executive director of the FACT Coalition, which lobbied for the legislation. Click here to read... [7]

Climate Change Led to Record Insurance Payouts in 2020

Covid-19 continues to cause severe economic distress, but natural disasters fuelled by a warming planet also took their toll this year, causing record damage and displacing millions according to two new assessments of insurance claims in 2020. Christian Aid, the relief arm of 41 churches in the U.K. and Ireland, ranked the 15 most destructive climate disasters of the year based on insurance losses. Cyclone Amphan, which hit the Bay of Bengal in May, was the most expensive single event, displacing 4.9 million people and costing $13 billion. With its relatively high property values, the U.S. topped the list of countries financially impacted by climate change, incurring $60 billion in damages. Much of that was caused by an unusually heavy Atlantic hurricane season. Altogether, the 30 named storms caused at least $41 billion in damages and displaced an estimated 200,000 people across the U.S., as well as Central America and the Caribbean. In another report that came out earlier in December, Swiss Reinsurance Company Ltd, the world largest reinsurer, found that 2020 was the fifth-costliest year for the industry in 40 years. Global losses amounted to $83 billion, the reinsurer found, driven by a record number of severe storms and wildfires in the U.S. Click here to read... [8]

Lotte, LF trying 'online for offline' strategy

Local fashion firms are pursuing "online for offline" (O4O) strategies appealing to consumers who want to try on clothes before making online purchases. The O4O strategy aims to combine fashion companies' online and offline businesses to utilize the strengths of the two amid the rising contactless consumer trend. Fashion firms collect data on customers online and use it to attract them to stores with new technologies and services. This helps them offer a tailored shopping environment to customers and increase their revenue in the end, said analysts and officials. Global companies have been working on digitizing their offline bases over the last four years. The retail giant Amazon already opened an unmanned Amazon Go convenience store in Seattle in December 2016. Customers there don't need to wait in line and their app will pay the price automatically once they leave the store.In Korea, LF introduced its O4O store in last October. It turned 20 outlets into O4O special stores recently, where customers can purchase clothes online and get their items at stores after trying them on. Before, apparel purchased online could not be experienced or exchanged at stores. Click here to read... [9]

China moves on to tackle the 'chips' for agriculture

As China is set to roll out the 2021 "No.1 Central Document" soon, the focus has shifted to a possible stranglehold in the agricultural sector. In a rare move, the top Chinese authority for the first time elevated the need to strengthen the homegrown seed industry in the blueprint that guides the country's agricultural sector. Such a development could cater for people's need for high-quality green food, the nation's necessity to heal its soil and benefit downstream processing sector. Seeds have been dubbed as the "semiconductor microchips" of the agricultural sector and Chinese analysts said the "turning-the-table campaign" in the $15 billion seed industry comes at the right time. The wording of the statement published after the meeting reflects some of the broader challenges faced by China's agricultural sector - from a possible bottleneck like those faced by some of the country's best technology companies to meet the improved demand of the Chinese people for quality agricultural produce. A more developed seed industry will also directly contribute to the nation's grain security, they noted. Click here to read... [10]

Turkey, Iran, Pakistan rail link to China's Belt and Road

The governments of Turkey, Iran and Pakistan will revive a transnational rail service linking Istanbul, Tehran and Islamabad in 2021. The roots of this grand ITI transnational railroad project can be found in the ITI Container Train Service launched in 2009 under the umbrella of the Economic Cooperation Organization. ECO is a 10-member political and economic intergovernmental organization founded in 1985 by Iran, Pakistan and Turkey. The container service only got as far as test runs, however, and was never fully operational. Even so, the three countries always planned to follow up the initial freight trains with passenger services. The immense route stretches 6,540 km -- more than a sixth of the world's circumference. Some 1,950 km of track is in Turkey, 2,600 km in Iran, and another 1,990 km in Pakistan. The journey from Istanbul to Islamabad will take ten days -- much faster than the 21 days by sea between Turkey and Pakistan. Speaking on condition of strict anonymity, a Pakistani government official told Nikkei that the ITI railroad will connect to China's Xinjiang Uyghur Autonomous Region through Pakistan's ML-1 railway line. Click here to read... [11]

Strategic

Marines Prepare for Rising Challenge from China’s Military With Island Training

The Marine Corps is stepping up training in Japan for island-based conflict in the Western Pacific, putting it at the leading edge of a pivot by the U.S. to face the military challenge from China. To give the Marines a bigger role in any maritime conflict, the service’s commandant, Gen. David Berger, is pursuing closer integration with the Navy and ways to support its control of the seas. The Marines are preparing for a far larger and more sophisticated adversary than extremists in the Middle East and Afghanistan, the focus of their operations in recent years. China’s military satellites, cyberwarfare capabilities, use of artificial intelligence and narrowing gap with U.S. firepower make it what the Pentagon calls a “near-peer” rival. “We’re trying to get away from tents, from computer screens, because one, it’s very stationary and, two, it has a huge electromagnetic signature,” said Lt. Col. Neil Berry, commander of the third battalion of the Eighth Marine Regiment, based in Camp Lejeune, N.C. Click here to read... [12]

Chinese Communist Party present at many global companies, group says

An international group of lawmakers has shared an apparent list of nearly 2 million Chinese Communist Party members with multiple governments, flagging the fact that many party members are employed by global companies, Nikkei has learned. According to the Inter-Parliamentary Alliance on China, the document dates back to 2016 and covers mainly members around Shanghai. The data -- and the furious response to it in some quarters -- underscores the dilemma that companies face in hiring party members. Party membership is highly competitive, making the body a source of exceptional talent. But as suspicion toward China grows, critics warn of the potential economic security risks involved in hiring Beijing loyalists. The list shows roughly 5,000 party members at nearly 300 Japanese companies or affiliated organizations. More than 80% of these members worked in the manufacturing sector. One Japanese company employed around 900 party members’ group wide. Large multinationals based in the U.S. and Europe appear on the list as well. Click here to read... [13]

Former US defense chiefs discourage military from engaging in election disputes

All living former US defense secretaries called for a peaceful transfer of power on January 20 and warned against the involvement of the military in election disputes. In an opinion article in The Washington Post, a US daily, the secretaries said that the "time for questioning the results has passed", referring to current US President Donald Trump's refusal to accept defeat following the win of Joe Biden in the November elections. The group included Mark Esper, who was fired from the Trump administration and Dick Cheney, who was also the vice president in the George W. Bush administration. "Our elections have occurred. Recounts and audits have been conducted. Appropriate challenges have been addressed by the courts. Governors have certified the results. And the Electoral College has voted," said the former defense secretaries. The opinion piece follows a statement from President-elect Joe Biden in December that some Pentagon officials were not co-operating in providing essential information needed for a smooth transition. Click here to read... [14]

Coronavirus, political scandals hit Japanese leader Suga's popularity

Finding a solution to the coronavirus pandemic at the same time as keeping the national economy afloat were the primary ambitions of the new government, Suga said after members of the ruling Liberal Democratic Party selected him to essentially continue the policies that had seen Abe serve for almost eight years. But the fissures in his leadership have quickly become apparent. After recording a public support rate of an impressive 74% in late September, there has been a steady but uninterrupted slump in Suga's support. In the most recent poll, released on December 28, the prime minister had lost more than 30 points and his support rate stood at a mere 42%. Analysts say it is increasingly likely that the party will fare badly in a general election that is being pencilled in for the late autumn and that Suga will join a long list of Japanese prime ministers who have lasted just a year or so in office. And they add that returning to a revolving-door approach to leaders is the last thing that Japan needs at a time of heightened geopolitical tensions around the world, the lingering coronavirus crisis and the need to get the economy pumping once again. Click here to read... [15]

2020: A year in conflict

Drones have been used for assassination and ISR (intelligence, surveillance and reconnaissance) for decades, but 2020 marked the first time that armed drones were used in operational conflicts between two clearly defined sides. As the producer of the popular and effective Bayraktar TB2 combat drone, the Turkish military looked to maximise its potential. Not especially fast, only lightly armed and with a mediocre range, the TB2 nevertheless became extremely effective when used to spot targets for long-range artillery, its own firepower providing on-the-spot pinpoint accuracy. This was used with great success in Idlib in March when Turkish forces routed Syrian government military formations moving against them. Another combination tactic trialled in Idlib was the use of electronic jamming suites like Koral along with armed drones. These systems are designed to deceive and jam an enemy’s radar so it cannot see what is happening in the battlespace, rendering it useless. Click here to read... [16]

Nile dam dispute: Sudan, Egypt, Ethiopia agree to hold more talks

Sudan, Egypt and Ethiopia agreed on Jan 03 to hold further talks this month to resolve their long-running dispute over the Addis Ababa’s huge dam on the Blue Nile, Sudan’s water ministry said. Previous three-way talks have failed to produce an agreement on the filling and operation of the vast reservoir behind the 145-metre (475-foot) tall Grand Ethiopian Renaissance Dam (GERD), a hydropower project which broke ground in 2011. Key questions remain about how much water Ethiopia will release downstream if a multiyear drought occurs and how the three countries will resolve any future disputes. Ethiopia has rejected binding arbitration at the final stage of the project. Egypt, which depends on the Nile for about 97 percent of its irrigation and drinking water, fears Ethiopia’s dam would severely cut its water share. Sudan – which boycotted talks in November, urging the African Union to play a greater role in reaching a deal – hopes the dam will help ameliorate flooding, but has also warned that millions of lives would be at “great risk” if no binding agreement was reached. Ethiopia says the hydroelectric power produced at the dam is vital to meet the power needs of its population and insists downstream countries’ water supplies will not be affected. Click here to read... [17]

India: Tibetans in exile vote to elect new political leader

Hundreds of Tibetans in exile have voted in India’s northern city of Dharamshala, where the exiled government is based, for their new political leader as the current officeholder’s five-year term nears its end. The voters wore masks, maintained social distance and used hand sanitiser as they cast their ballots during the first round of the election on Jan 03. Many assisted elderly voters to fill the correct forms. In this first phase of voting, two candidates for the top government post of president will be shortlisted, including 90 parliamentarians. The second and final round of voting will take place in April. “By this, we are sending a clear message to Beijing that Tibet is under occupation but Tibetans in exile are free. And given a chance, an opportunity, we prefer democracy,” said Lobsang Sangay, who will soon be finishing his second and final term as the Tibetan political leader. Formed in 1959, Tibet’s government-in-exile – now called the Central Tibetan Administration – has executive, judiciary and legislative branches, with candidates for the office of sikyong, or president, elected since 2011 by popular vote. Click here to read... [18]

US aircraft carrier to stay in Gulf: Pentagon

The US reversed a decision to bring an aircraft carrier home from the Gulf on Jan 03, with the Pentagon saying that due to “recent threats” by Iran the USS Nimitz would stay in position. The Nimitz has been patrolling Gulf waters since late November, but in a statement issued on December 31, acting US defense secretary Christopher C. Miller ordered the vessel to “transit directly home to complete a nearly 10-month deployment.” The New York Times, quoting US officials, said this move was part of a “de-escalatory” signal to Tehran to avoid a conflict in President Donald Trump’s last days in office. However, Miller issued a new statement changing course on Jan 03. “Due to the recent threats issued by Iranian leaders against President Trump and other US government officials, I have ordered the USS Nimitz to halt its routine redeployment,” he said. “The USS Nimitz will now remain on station in the US Central Command area of operations. No one should doubt the resolve of the United States of America.” Click here to read... [19]

Indonesia’s new Cabinet and the political transformation of Joko Widodo

Indonesian President Joko Widodo reshuffled his 14-month-old Cabinet last week. While the move was widely anticipated, the sweeping changes came as a surprise. Six ministers were replaced. His vision is now more narrowly focused on what experts call “new developmentalism”, with its focus on deregulation and its conservative, nationalist bent a departure from Jokowi’s past reformist agenda and a nod at the old ways of doing things in Indonesia. You have to remember Jokowi rode into office on an anti-establishment platform. This is a man who presented himself as an outsider in 2014, in a country where political elites and military men typically fill the top position. He was catapulted into the presidential seat barely 10 years after his first foray into politics as mayor of his hometown Surakarta, without being beholden to any of the political parties that have come to define and dominate Indonesia’s political landscape for decades. His rise to power defied the odds and captured the imagination of many ordinary Indonesians. Many heralded his win as a new era in Indonesian politics. Click here to read... [20]

US military blames Taliban for spate of Afghan assassinations

The US military on Jan 04 blamed the Taliban for a spate of assassinations of prominent Afghans, the first time Washington has directly accused the insurgent group of the killings. The charge comes as the Afghan government and Taliban are due Jan 05 to resume peace talks in Qatar, as both sides seek an end to the long-running conflict. "The Taliban's campaign of unclaimed attacks and targeted killings of government officials, civil society leaders & journalists must... cease for peace to succeed," Colonel Sonny Leggett, spokesman for US forces in Afghanistan, said on Twitter. The deputy governor of Kabul province, five journalists, and a prominent election activist have been among those assassinated since November. Afghan officials blame the Taliban for the killings, but the hard line group has denied the charge, while the rival Islamic State militant group says its fighters were responsible for some of them. Leggett's statement comes as the Taliban accused US forces of carrying out air strikes against insurgents in Kandahar, Nangarhar and Helmand provinces in recent days. Click here to read... [21]

In New Year's speech, Taiwan president again reaches out to China

Taiwan is ready to have "meaningful" talks with China as equals as long as they are willing to put aside confrontation, President Tsai Ing-wen said on Jan 01, offering another olive branch to Beijing in her New Year's speech. Democratic Taiwan, claimed by China as its sovereign territory, has come under increasing pressure from Beijing, which has ramped up military activity near the island. Speaking at the presidential office, Tsai said that in the past year, Chinese military activity near Taiwan has threatened peace and stability in the Indo-Pacific region. "I want to reiterate, that when it comes to cross-strait relations we will not advance rashly and will stick to our principles," Tsai said. "As long as the Beijing authorities are determined to defuse antagonism and improve cross-strait relations, in line with the principles of reciprocity and dignity, we are willing to jointly promote meaningful dialogue," she added, echoing comments she made in October in her national day speech. China, which cut off formal talks mechanism in 2016 after she first won office, has repeatedly rejected Tsai's advances, saying she has to first accept Taiwan is part of China, something Tsai has refused to do. Click here to read... [22]

Iran tells IAEA it plans to enrich uranium to up to 20% at Fordow site

Iran has told the United Nations nuclear watchdog it plans to enrich uranium to up to 20% purity, a level it achieved before its 2015 accord, at its Fordow site buried inside a mountain, the agency said on Jan 01. The move is the latest of several recent announcements by Iran to the International Atomic Energy Agency that it plans to further breach the deal, which it started violating in 2019 in retaliation for Washington's withdrawal from the agreement and the reimposition of U.S. sanctions against Tehran. Such moves by Iran could complicate efforts by U.S. President-elect Joe Biden to rejoin the deal. Fordow was built inside a mountain, apparently to protect it from aerial bombardment, and the 2015 deal does not allow enrichment there. Iran has breached the deal's 3.67% limit on the purity to which it can enrich uranium, but it has only gone up to 4.5% so far, well short of the 20% it achieved before the deal and the 90% that is weapons-grade. Click here to read... [23]

Kremlin Refutes Claims about Putin's Potential Successors as Unsubstantiated

Politicians' reflections about a successor for Russian President Vladimir Putin are most often absolutely unsubstantiated, Kremlin spokesman Dmitry Peskov said on Dec 29."The 'successors' topic is traditionally generating great interest in Russia's political circles and political experts circles ... It has always been the case, and I believe it will always remain the case", Peskov told reporters. The Kremlin spokesman added that such reflections are most often nothing but rhetoric and they are not substantiated by anything. Vladimir Zhirinovsky, the leader of the Liberal Democratic Party of Russia, has recently named prime minister Mikhail Mishustin, defense minister Sergei Shoigu, Russian Foreign Intelligence Service Director Sergey Naryshkin, upper chamber speaker Valentina Matviyenko, lower chamber speaker Viacheslav Volodin, Accounts Chamber Chairman Alexei Kudrin, Moscow Mayor Sergey Sobyanin and Tula region governor Alexei Dyumin among potential successors of the Russian leader. Click here to read... [24]

Xi Focus: Xi signs mobilization order for training of armed forces

Chinese President Xi Jinping on Jan 04 signed a mobilization order for the training of the armed forces, the first order of the Central Military Commission (CMC) in 2021. Signed by Xi, also general secretary of the Communist Party of China (CPC) Central Committee and chairman of the CMC, the order stressed strengthening military training in real combat conditions and the ability to win. The order urged the armed forces to enhance training in real combat conditions to ensure combat readiness at all times. It called for efforts to be made for joint operations in combat and training, highlighting training under joint command, as well as training across the fields and services. It also urged efforts to largely improve the use of technology in training and guide the training in accordance with the law. All officers and soldiers of the military should strengthen their willpower to fight, improve their skills, and resolutely accomplish the missions and tasks entrusted by the Party and the people in the new era to welcome the CPC centenary with outstanding achievement, according to the order. Click here to read... [25]

China-US trade war: Biden team to tackle EU differences and ‘then take on Beijing’

The United States aims to end its trade war with European allies and work with them to deal with China’s trade practices, a key official in the upcoming administration of Joe Biden said after Beijing and Brussels signed a major investment deal. Jake Sullivan, Biden’s national security adviser, told CNN on Jan 03 that the new administration in Washington would recognise China as a serious strategic competitor to the US. He also said president-elect Biden would work out the economic differences between the US and its European allies to improve their relations and jointly counter China on multiple fronts, from trade and technology, to the military and human rights. Observers said that by naming Beijing as a strategic competitor, the Biden administration would not only put more economic and trade pressure on China but also push ahead in other key areas for the long term, including control over the Indo-Pacific. Click here to read... [26]

Sri Lanka to scrap Japan-funded infrastructure projects

The ultranationalist government of President Gotabaya Rajapaksa wants to terminate the agreement with Japan, which had for decades been the largest supplier of development assistance to Sri Lanka, for the construction of an elevated commuter rail project through Colombo and the development of a container terminal in the Colombo Port. A veteran Sri Lankan diplomat warned that the country will lose out if governments continue to abandon sovereign guarantees. "Japan's development assistance to Sri Lanka made over the years has been without any strategic or political pressure." The Rajapaksa government's arbitrary actions toward Japan -- justifying the move as a shift to end foreign loans for infrastructure projects and preferring investment-led public-private partnerships -- has contributed to a national conversation about Sri Lanka's dependency on debt for development. Sri Lanka's $88 billion economy is bogged down by a debt pile of $50.8 billion. The country is under pressure to settle an average of $4 billion annually in foreign debt over the next four years even as its foreign reserves have shrunk to a three-year low of $5.8 billion. Click here to read... [27]

Medical

Covid-19 Was Consuming India, Until Nearly Everyone Started Wearing Masks

In September, India was reporting almost 100,000 Covid-19 cases a day, with many predicting it would soon pass the U.S. in overall cases. Instead, its infections dropped and are now at one-fourth that level. India has brought down its virus numbers, despite often being too crowded for social distancing, having too many cases for effective contact tracing and an economy that isn’t well equipped to weather long lockdowns. One of the main reasons, Indian health officials say, is that the country has managed to encourage and enforce almost universal acceptance of masks without much debate. From the moment the pandemic landed in this South Asian nation, politicians and health experts have been united about the importance of masks, including Prime Minister Narendra Modi. “Until you have a vaccine, you have a social vaccine, and the social vaccine is the mask,” said Health Minister Harsh Vardhan, pointing to his mask and repeating the mantra he uses in speeches addressing the nation. Indians have embraced masks thanks to a combination of factors, including a healthy fear of the virus among the public, a unified voice from authorities, billions of automated phone messages and hundreds of thousands of masking-violation tickets. Click here to read... [28]

Israel Vaccinates More Than 10% of Its Population in Two Weeks

Israel has inoculated nearly half of its most at-risk citizens and more than 10% of the population in two weeks as authorities accelerate a Covid-19 vaccination drive after early hiccups had led to wasted shots. The small country—with roughly nine million people, about the same as New York City—now aims to immunize the majority of its people by early spring. Israel’s vaccination campaign is relatively simple compared with the mass mobilizations needed by countries with many more people and a greater sweep of geography. Israel started with vaccinating its health-care workers and those over the age of 60 on Dec. 20 after receiving early shipments of Pfizer Inc.’s vaccine. By Saturday, it had administered 12.59 doses per 100 of its people, according to the Oxford University-based research group Our World in Data. That rate of inoculation is nearly four times quicker than the second-fastest nation, the tiny Arab Gulf state of Bahrain. Israel has purchased 8 million doses from Pfizer, 6 million from Moderna and 10 million from AstraZeneca, but it isn’t clear when the shipments will arrive. Vaccine makers say it takes two doses to be fully effective. Click here to read... [29]

U.S. may cut some Moderna vaccine doses in half to speed rollout, official says

The U.S. government is considering giving some people half the dose of Moderna's COVID-19 vaccine in order to speed vaccinations, a federal official said on Jan 03. "We know that for the Moderna vaccine, giving half of the dose to people between the ages of 18 and 55, two doses, half the dose, which means exactly achieving the objective of immunizing double the number of people with the doses we have," Moncef Slaoui, head of Operation Warp Speed, the federal vaccine program, said on CBS' "Face the Nation". "We know it induces identical immune response" to the full dose, he said. Moderna and the FDA could not immediately be reached for comment. Click here to read... [30]