Global Developments and Analysis: Weekly Monitor, 03 May - 09 May 2021

Economic

EU suspends efforts to ratify investment deal with China amid ongoing sanctions row, Commission VP tells AFP

The EU has suspended its efforts to ratify a huge investment deal with China due to a row and a sanctions battle over Beijing's alleged human rights violations, the deputy chief of the bloc's executive branch has told AFP. "We have for the moment […] suspended some political awareness efforts on the side of the Commission," vice president of the EU Commission, Valdis Dombrovskis, said in an interview with the outlet on May 04. Dombrovskis said the situation created by the EU and China's tit-for-tat sanctions is "not conducive to the ratification" of the Comprehensive Agreement on Investment (CAI). After six years of negotiations, the EU and Beijing agreed the CAI in principle at the end of last year, but it still required the ratification of the European Parliament. The pause in the journey towards ratification follows months of uncertainty for the agreement, after the EU criticized China over its alleged human rights violations against Uighur Muslims. In March, Brussels hit Beijing with its first sanctions against China in 30 years, over claims that members of the ethnic minority were being kept in concentration camps and subjected to forced labour in China's northwest Xinjiang region.
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China Faces Tougher Rules on Its European Deals Spree

The European Union unveiled draft rules on May 05 aimed at cracking down on state-subsidized foreign companies in Europe. The legislation is the latest sign of Europe’s shifting stance toward China, the bloc’s biggest trading partner for goods and a crucial market for its exporters. While the new rules don’t single out China, analysts said large Chinese companies would be a primary target. If approved by the EU’s 27 governments and the European Parliament, the rules would grant the bloc’s muscular antitrust authorities new powers to block foreign companies from making acquisitions in Europe or receiving public contracts if they are deemed to have benefited from government subsidies. Companies would face stiff fines if they failed to comply with the EU’s demands. Under the EU’s proposals, companies would be required to notify authorities of foreign subsidies they receive if they are bidding for public contracts worth at least 250 million euros, equivalent to $300 million, or planning mergers above certain thresholds. Such subsidies may include zero-interest loans, unlimited guarantees, preferential tax treatment or direct grants.
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China suspends economic dialogue with Australia ‘indefinitely’ amid spat over Belt & Road Initiative

Beijing has axed a high-level channel for economic talks with Canberra blasting Australian leaders for having a “Cold War mentality” after the country cancelled two contracts linked to its Belt and Road project. In a harshly worded statement on May 06, China’s economic planner, the National Development and Reform Commission, said the China-Australia Strategic Economic Dialogue would be paused indefinitely. Based on the current attitude of the Australian Commonwealth Government toward China-Australia cooperation, the National Development and Reform Commission of the People’s Republic of China decides to indefinitely suspend all activities under the framework of the China-Australia Strategic Economic Dialogue. Ties, and especially trade relations, between the two states have steadily frayed in recent months, seeing Beijing threaten economic retaliation after Canberra demanded an international probe into the origins of the coronavirus pandemic, which was first detected in the Chinese city of Wuhan in late 2019. Before that, in 2018, Australia moved to ban the Shenzhen-based telecom giant Huawei and passed a number of foreign interference laws targeting Beijing, both prompting terse responses.
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Ransomware attack shuts down major US pipeline

The operator of a major pipeline system that transports fuel across the East Coast said May 08 it had been victimized by a ransomware attack and had halted all pipeline operations to deal with the threat. The attack is unlikely to affect gasoline supply and prices unless it leads to a prolonged shutdown of the pipeline, experts said. Colonial Pipeline did not say what was demanded or who made the demand. Ransomware attacks are typically carried out by criminal hackers who seize data and demand a large payment in order to release it. The attack on the company, which says it delivers roughly 45% of fuel consumed on the East Coast, underscores again the vulnerabilities of critical infrastructure to damaging cyberattacks that threaten to impede operations. Colonial Pipeline said the ransomware attack May 07 affected some of its information technology systems and that the company moved "proactively" to take certain systems offline, halting pipeline operations. In an earlier statement, it said it was "taking steps to understand and resolve this issue" with an eye toward returning to normal operations.
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EU and India agree to resume free-trade negotiations

The European Union and India agreed to resume stalled free-trade negotiations and seek closer cooperation to combat climate change at a virtual summit on May 08, as concerns about China bring Brussels and New Delhi closer. Partly overshadowed by the COVID-19 crisis in India, the meeting brought together Indian Prime Minister Narendra Modi and all of the bloc's 27 leaders for the first time in a sign of the EU's renewed interest in the Indo-Pacific region. Past EU-India summits have involved only the Indian prime minister and the EU's chief executive and chairman. "We agreed to resume negotiations for a ... trade agreement which would respond to the current challenges," EU and Indian leaders said in a statement after the talks, adding that for talks to succeed, both sides had to solve market access issues. In parallel, EU and India will start talks on a separate investment protection deal and an accord on geographical indications - famous brand names often linked to the places they are made, from France's champagne to India's Darjeeling tea.
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Companies need 'economic security executive,' Japan says

Japan wants companies involved in strategic industries such as semiconductors and nuclear power to appoint an executive responsible for economic security issues. Government officials are preparing to create a forum as early as this year for talks on how to safeguard crucial technology and prevent excessive reliance on Chinese manufacturing, among other topics. The Japan Business Federation, or Keidanren, is among the organizations that will be asked to join the forum. Tokyo's initiative comes as nations tighten controls on artificial intelligence, 5G communication, drones, semiconductors and other technologies that can confer military advantages. Japan already has approached several companies informally on the possibility of appointing an economic security officer. This post would give Tokyo a liaison for policy discussions who has broad oversight over all of a company's divisions. The country is home to some of the world's leading suppliers of semiconductor manufacturing equipment and materials, as well as industrial groups that span aerospace, energy, computing and other sectors intertwined with national security.
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Singapore puts ‘temporary pause’ on new data centres: Why and what it means for the industry

With consumers and businesses gobbling up more data in an increasingly connected world, data centres are in hot demand. This demand will only increase, hastened by the COVID-19 pandemic and new technologies such as 5G, artificial intelligence and the Internet of Things. “(The) technologies will drive demand for greater data and computing capacity, leading to a rise in data centre infrastructures,” said Mr Richard Farrell, the Asia-Pacific director for cloud and data centre segment at power management firm Eaton. But data centres are also huge energy hogs – everything from the servers, storage equipment and cooling infrastructures have a large appetite for electricity. The International Energy Agency estimates that the sector currently uses around 1 per cent of the world’s electricity. This figure could hit double-digits by 2030, making related emissions a problem. In Singapore, data centres accounted for about 7 per cent of the country’s total electricity consumption last year, said the Ministry of Trade and Industry (MTI) in a recent written answer to a parliamentary question. There are about 60 data centres in Singapore, according to a tally by research firm Structure Research.
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Strategic

Nuclear deal possible if Iran makes political decision: US

Agreement could be reached within weeks on a path for Washington and Tehran to resume compliance with the 2015 Iran nuclear deal if Iran makes a political decision to do so, a senior US State Department official said. “Is it possible that we’ll see a mutual return to compliance in the next few weeks, or an understanding of a mutual compliance? It’s possible, yes” the official told reporters on condition of anonymity during a telephone briefing on May 06. “Is it likely? Only time will tell, because as I said, this is ultimately a matter of a political decision that needs to be made in Iran,” the official added.US officials return to Vienna this week for a fourth round of indirect talks brokered by the United Kingdom, China, France German, Russia and the European Union with Iran on how to resume compliance with the deal. The US official said it is “absolutely” possible to revive a nuclear deal before Iran’s June 18 elections but put the onus on Iran to make such a political decision and to avoid asking Washington to do more than what is envisaged in the agreement while Tehran would seek to do less.
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Iran confirms Saudi talks, but says too early to discuss results

Iran’s foreign ministry has for the first time confirmed that talks have been held with regional rival Saudi Arabia in an effort to reduce tensions between the two countries and across the region.Foreign ministry spokesman Saeed Khatibzadeh told a virtual press conference on May 10 that Iran has always welcomed talks with its regional peers and that policy has not changed. This comes days after a Saudi foreign ministry official confirmed the talks, also saying it was premature to discuss definitive conclusions. Neither side has divulged details of the talks, but reports say that, in addition to bilateral ties, Tehran and Riyadh are talking about developments in Yemen and Iran’s 2015 nuclear deal with world powers that Saudi Arabia has opposed. A Saudi-led military coalition has been battling Yemen’s Houthis for the past six years, causing the world’s worst humanitarian crisis. The Houthis, which Saudi Arabia says are armed by Iran, have recently stepped up their attacks on Saudi soil. The potential for Iran-Saudi rapprochement comes as the US reduces its presence in the troubled region and has ended its support for the war in Yemen.
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Egypt and Turkey hold ‘frank’ official talks, first since 2013

Egypt and Turkey said they had held “frank” discussions during the first official diplomatic talks between the regional rivals for eight years, a joint statement said. “The discussions were frank and in-depth” the statement released by Cairo and Ankara said on May 06. Ankara and Cairo have both faced US pressure since the departure of their ally, former President Donald Trump, and both have been extending olive branches to their neighbours. Egyptian President Abdel Fattah al-Sisi and his Turkish counterpart Recep Tayyip Erdogan have been sparring since the military’s 2013 deposing of President Mohamed Morsi, personally backed by Erdogan. Erdogan said on March 12 that the two countries have held “intelligence, diplomatic and economic” contacts, adding that he hoped for “strong” ties between the two nations.A week after Erdogan’s remarks, his government asked three Istanbul-based Egyptian TV channels, linked to the Muslim Brotherhood, to soften their critical political coverage of the Egyptian government. The two countries have also been on opposite sides of the conflict in oil-rich Libya, which descended into chaos in the aftermath of the 2011 NATO-backed uprising that overthrew ruler Muammar Gaddafi.
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Israel’s president gives centrist Yair Lapid mandate to form government after PM Netanyahu misses deadline

The president of Israel, Reuven Rivlin, has asked opposition leader Yair Lapid to form a government after Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu failed to secure enough support to form a coalition. Lapid, the chairman of the centrist Yesh Atid party will have a 28-day mandate to form a government. He has so far received 56 recommendations from lawmakers from across Israel’s 120-seat Knesset. The politician has pledged to rotate as prime minister with Naftali Bennett, the chairman of the right-wing Yamina party, who has seven recommendations. Rivlin made the announcement in a televised speech on May 05, saying it was clear Lapid could form a government, given the support for him in the Knesset. Israel, which has held four elections in two years, has been “caught in a maze – if not a political crisis,” the president said. Earlier on May 05, Bennett urged all political parties to form a “broad emergency government” in order to avoid a fifth election. At midnight local time on May 04, Netanyahu, Israel’s longest-serving leader, missed the deadline to form a government.
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Pakistan fears Afghan pullback by US will stall Belt and Road

Pakistan fears that the U.S. withdrawal from Afghanistan -- in line with the American-Taliban peace deal signed last year -- will increase instability in both itself and its neighbour, causing more security threats and ultimately putting China's Belt and Road projects at risk. U.S. forces have already started pulling out of Afghanistan after 20 years of America's longest war. The withdrawal is expected to complete on Sept. 11 to mark the 20th anniversary of the devastating al-Qaida attacks on the U.S. Even before the withdrawal began, instability in Pakistan has steadily increased. The outlawed militant group Pakistani Taliban, known as Tehreek e-Taliban Pakistan (TTP), has taken advantage of the situation and increased cross-border attacks in Pakistan. Last month, Chinese Ambassador Nong Rong barely survived a suicide attack by TTP in Quetta. Last week, the group killed nine security personnel in multiple attacks near the Pakistan-Afghan border. Militancy analyst Fakhar Kakakhel believes the U.S. withdrawal coupled with a weak government in Kabul will seriously destabilize the region.
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US eyes using Japan's submarines to 'choke' Chinese navy

For all its massive military buildup, China has some weaknesses that are hard to overcome. One of them is geography. "When you look at China's submarine bases, every single one of them has a fair bit of shallow water that their submarines have to transit through in order to get to deep water," Tom Shugart, a former U.S. Navy submariner told Nikkei Asia. Japanese and Taiwanese submarines can go straight into deep waters, a luxury their Chinese counterparts do not have.Chokepoint control could be one of Japan's most important contributions in a potential conflict with China, said Jeffrey Hornung, a political scientist at Rand Corp. President Joe Biden and Prime Minister Yoshihide Suga underscored "the importance of peace and stability across the Taiwan Strait" in the joint statement following their April 16 summit, the first reference to Taiwan in a U.S.-Japan leaders statement since 1969. On May 07, U.S. Defense Secretary Lloyd Austin floated a new concept of "integrated deterrence." It calls for allies to work "hand in hand" to prepare for a future war, which will look nothing like the "old wars" that Austin said he himself has executed over the past two decades.
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India and UK unveil 10-year road map to stronger ties at virtual summit

With his planned visit to India twice postponed owing to COVID-19, British Prime Minister Boris Johnson held a virtual meeting with his Indian counterpart Narendra Modi on May 04 during which they announced a 10-year plan to deepen the bilateral relationship with a focus on trade and defence. The "2030 Roadmap" elevates the relationship to a comprehensive strategic partnership, as it also focuses on people-to-people connections, climate action and health. Indian officials said the declaration of an enhanced trade partnership was one of the "big-ticket" announcements of the summit. Both leaders further decided to quickly conclude discussions on a free trade agreement. Though the two countries' strategic partnership stretches back more than 16 years, their move to take "a quantum leap" as they have termed it, is a sign of how their strategic interests have aligned more closely over the last year. Increased cooperation in defense is a significant pillar of the road map, with an aim to develop a "free, open and secure Indo-Pacific region."
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Diet set to revise referendum law as parties agree on bill revisions

The Diet is expected to soon enact a bill to amend the national referendum law, paving the way for a possible national referendum on revising the Constitution. Toshihiro Nikai, secretary-general of the ruling Liberal Democratic Party, met his counterpart in the main opposition Constitutional Democratic Party of Japan, Tetsuro Fukuyama, at the Diet building on May 6. Nikai told Fukuyama that the ruling coalition will accept the CDP’s proposed revisions to the bill to amend the law, which sets out the procedures for making constitutional amendments, sources said. The bill was put to a vote and passed at the May 6 session of the Lower House Commission on the Constitution. The CDP has called for adding provisions to the bill that would regulate TV and radio advertising related to a national referendum. It also drafted a revision that would add a section stating that necessary legislative measures should be taken within three years after the revised law takes effect. All seven amendments currently up for consideration, including setting up polling stations at large commercial facilities, are features that have already been adopted in elections.
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Taliban filling US vacuum with violence and threat

On May 08, a car bomb targeting schoolgirls in the capital Kabul killed 85 and wounded another 147 in an area home to ethnic Hazara Shiites, a minority group that has been targeted by radical Sunni groups allied with the Taliban, not least among them ISIS. On May 1, the day US and NATO forces began to withdraw formally from the country, the Taliban launched a lethal attack on a key army base in the south-eastern province of Ghazni. Over 17 soldiers were killed and dozens captured in the surprise assault. In Helmand province, where US forces just the day before handed authority over a base to Afghan national security forces, a Taliban attack on Lashkar Gah sparked heavy fighting that displaced hundreds of families. The Afghan Defense Ministry has confirmed its security forces are currently responding to Taliban attacks in at least six provinces apart from Helmand. The surge in violence is raising hard questions about the credibility of the multinational peace process, where a so-called “extended troika” comprised of the US, China, and Russia along with Pakistan, the Taliban and Afghan national government recently convened in Doha, Qatar, to announce a new “road map” to peace.
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China eyes strategic airfield deep in the Pacific

China could be moving a crucial chess piece into position in the Pacific frontier — and there isn’t a single thing the US can do about it. According to media reports, a derelict airfield on a remote Pacific island in the Republic of Kiribati could soon get an upgrade from the People’s Republic of China. The two nations re-established ties two years ago and have embarked on new cooperation projects, including infrastructure investment as well as trade and cultural exchanges. If the report is true, this could give Beijing an airbase in an incredibly strategical location, between North America and New Zealand, potentially giving China’s military much greater reach throughout a critical and increasingly tense region, The War Zone reported. Reuters first reported on Chinese developments in Kiribati, which also included improvements to a bridge associated with the airstrip, on May 5, 2021, based on information from I-Kiribati politician Tessie Lambourne. The site — on the island of Kanton, also spelled Canton, part of the archipelago nation of Kiribati — currently has a single usable runway, officially measuring 6,230 feet in length, although the total unimproved length is closer to 8,000 feet, based on satellite imagery.
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Hundreds hurt in new Jerusalem clashes between Israelis, Palestinians

Hundreds were wounded in new clashes on May 10 between Palestinians and Israeli security forces in Jerusalem as a planned march marking Israel's 1967 takeover of the holy city threatened to further inflame tensions. Palestinians hurled projectiles at Israeli officers in riot gear who fired rubber bullets, stun grenades and tear gas, an AFP correspondent at the scene said, following a night of sporadic clashes. "There are hundreds of people injured from the clashes" and about 50 were hospitalised, the Palestinian Red Crescent said about the latest unrest since violence escalated following the last Friday prayers of the holy Muslim month of Ramadan. The clashes were the latest in days of the worst such disturbances in Jerusalem since 2017, fuelled by a years-long bid by Jewish settlers to take over nearby Palestinian homes in Israeli-annexed east Jerusalem. A key court hearing scheduled for May 10 on Sheikh Jarrah, the flashpoint east Jerusalem neighbourhood at the centre of the property dispute, has been postponed.
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Moon urges North Korea to return to negotiation table

President Moon Jae-in said May 10 that the new North Korea policy developed by President Joe Biden's administration was "another chance" for Pyongyang to begin dialogue, pledging he will do his utmost to facilitate talks between the two Koreas and the U.S. "The U.S. consulted with the South Korean government on the policy from the beginning, in the belief that the prolonged breakdown in talks with the North is inappropriate," Moon said during a press conference marking his fourth anniversary in office. "Though the new U.S. administration's North Korea policy has not been fully revealed, it is on the same page as our government." Following the inauguration of the Biden government, North Korea has tested the U.S. and South Korea by launching short-range missiles in March and engaging in verbal threats while severing all contact with Seoul.Against this backdrop, Washington has dropped hints about its policy toward the North, with White House Press Secretary Jen Psaki saying it will be a "calibrated, practical approach that is open to and will explore diplomacy." "This is the result of close consultation with us," Moon said during a speech before the press conference.
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Chinese President Xi Jinping pledges support for Tokyo Olympics

Chinese President Xi Jinping told International Olympic Committee chief Thomas Bach, May 07, that his country will support the holding of this summer's Tokyo Games, despite the COVID-19 pandemic showing few sign of easing soon in Japan. The official Xinhua news agency also quoted Xi as saying, during a telephone conversation with Bach, that China was confident about hosting the Beijing Winter Olympics and Paralympics next year on schedule despite the pandemic. Xi's remarks came as calls are mounting both at home and abroad for the Tokyo Games to be postponed or cancelled amid the continued spread of the coronavirus, while Beijing faces a potential Olympic boycott by democratic nations condemning its alleged human rights violations. In April, Japanese government sources said Foreign Minister Toshimitsu Motegi back-pedalled on a previous pledge to cooperate in making the Beijing Olympics a success during a telephone call with his Chinese counterpart Wang Yi. Xi, however, may be trying to prevent relations between China and its neighbour from souring further by expressing support for the Tokyo Games, as China-US tensions have escalated over several economic and security matters, according to pundits.
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Saudi Arabia-Pakistan agree to mend strained ties

Saudi Arabia and longstanding ally Pakistan signed several agreements on May 08 and vowed to revive ties strained by months of disagreement over policy on the Kashmir dispute. “They affirmed the depth of relations between the two brotherly countries and underscored the importance of expanding and intensifying aspects of bilateral cooperation and coordination,” a Saudi statement said.Although the kingdom was the first foreign country Khan visited after taking office, Riyadh appeared frustrated with Islamabad last year.In a sharply worded statement in August, Pakistani Foreign Minister Shah Mahmood Qureshi called on the Saudi-based Organisation of Islamic Cooperation (OIC) to convene a high-level meeting on Kashmir. The call raised eyebrows in Riyadh where it was widely seen as a warning that Pakistan was preparing to call for a session outside OIC auspices. Saudi Arabia prides itself on its role as guardian of Islam’s holiest sites and is particularly sensitive about any move that might undermine its leadership of the 57-member pan-Islamic body. While the kingdom has supported Pakistan with billions of dollars in aid and loans in recent years, observers say it is also keen not to upset India, a key business partner and importer of Saudi oil.
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Medical

US backs temporary patent waiver for COVID-19 vaccine

President Joe Biden on May 05 threw his support behind waiving intellectual property rights for COVID-19 vaccines, bowing to mounting pressure from Democratic lawmakers and more than 100 other countries, but angering pharmaceutical companies. Biden voiced his support for a temporary waiver - a sharp reversal of the previous U.S. position - after a speech at the White House, followed swiftly by an official statement from his chief trade negotiator, Katherine Tai. "This is a global health crisis, and the extraordinary circumstances of the COVID-19 pandemic call for extraordinary measures," Tai said in a statement, amid growing concern that big outbreaks in India could allow the rise of vaccine-resistant strains of the deadly virus, undermining a global recovery. Shares in a number of makers of vaccines for COVID-19 tumbled on the news.Biden, who backed a waiver during the 2020 presidential campaign, has made fighting the coronavirus a top priority of his administration and the rollout of vaccines in the United States has led to a decline in case numbers and deaths.
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Japan backs ADB with $15 million for universal health coverage in Asia

Japan will contribute $15 million to a fund aimed at promoting universal health coverage in the Asia-Pacific region to prevent the resurgence of the coronavirus and other pandemics, Finance Minister Taro Aso said on May 05. Addressing the Asian Development Bank’s (ADB) annual meeting, Aso underscored the need to support health systems to cope with infectious diseases such as COVID-19 as well as other illness. Promoting universal health coverage will help reinforce health systems to prevent future pandemics, ensuring inclusive and sustainable economic growth in the region with ageing populations, Aso said. The contribution will be paid into the Japan Fund for Prosperous and Resilient Asia and the Pacific, which backs ADB’s efforts to address health issues, climate change, infrastructure, debt and the poor hit hard by the pandemic.Asia accounts for more than 16 percent of global cases of around 150 million coronavirus infections, according to a Reuters tally as some economies like India struggle to contain the virus and its new variants, making economic recovery uneven. Containing the COVID-19 disease holds the biggest key to escaping from the health crisis, Aso told the virtual meeting. It is essential to further develop vaccines and other remedies, and secure fair access for developing countries, he added.
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EU drug regulator launches real-time review of China’s Sinovac coronavirus vaccine

The European medicines regulator has started a real-time review of Sinovac’s Covid-19 vaccine, with the drug becoming the first Chinese-developed jab to be evaluated by the bloc. The launch of the so-called “rolling review” was announced by the European Medicines Agency (EMA) on May 04. Rolling reviews are aimed at speeding up the approval process of medical drugs. The researchers are allowed to submit their findings for the review in real time rather than waiting for final results and providing the regulator with data in bulk. “EMA will assess the compliance of Covid-19 Vaccine (Vero Cell) Inactivated with the usual EU standards for effectiveness, safety and quality,” the regulator added. While EMA cannot predict the overall timelines, it should take less time than normal to evaluate an eventual application because of the work done during the rolling review. Sinovac’s jab has become the first Chinese-developed coronavirus vaccine to get evaluated by the European drug regulator. Currently, the EMA is also conducting rolling reviews of Russia’s Sputnik V vaccine, as well as jabs by German CureVac and US Novavax pharmaceutical companies.
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Canada approves Pfizer vaccine for children aged 12-15 after trial shows 100% efficacy in young teenagers

Canada has allowed children as young as 12 to receive the Pfizer/BioNTech Covid-19 vaccine. The company said the move will help protect them before the next school year starts.The review of medical data has shown that the Pfizer vaccine is “safe and effective” for younger teenagers, Supriya Sharma, a chief medical adviser to Health Canada, the government's medical agency, told reporters. Sharma said that, while younger people are generally less likely to have severe cases of Covid-19, giving them the vaccine will help reduce the risk of infecting their family members and friends, and allow a return to “a more normal life” amid the pandemic. She added that the most common side effects for children are mild and temporary, like “a sore arm, chills or fever.” Canada previously only allowed people aged 16 and older to be vaccinated. The decision to lower the bar to 12 was made after a Pfizer trial showed that the vaccine was 100% effective for adolescents and triggered “robust antibody responses.” The trial was conducted in the US and involved 2,260 people aged 12 to 15.A Pfizer spokesperson told Canadian media that Canada is the second country, after Algeria, to allow children aged 12 and older to receive its vaccine.
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Covid ‘signature’ found: Swiss scientists say they detected ‘biomarker’ that helps predict severe coronavirus cases early

Patients at risk of contracting a severe case of Covid-19 may now be able to get timely treatment thanks to a new method developed by Swiss researchers, who studied the behaviour of natural killer T cells in infected people. Detecting and treating life-threatening forms of the novel coronavirus disease before the acute symptoms kick in has been a challenge for medics since the start of the pandemic. Now, a team from the Swiss University of Zurich might have found a solution to this problem, a press release by the university says. The researchers, who teamed up with scientists from Germany’s Tuebingen and France’s Toulouse and Nantes, discovered a specific “biomarker” capable of predicting the development of a severe Covid-19 case at the very early stages. The key element here is the natural killer T cells found in a patient’s blood. These cells are a type of white blood cells engaged in an immune response. According to the Swiss scientists, the changes in their number can be an early strong indicator of a looming danger.
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