Tag Archives: caribbean

Antigua: Tourism Minister Concerned Over Airline Caribbean Flight Cancellations

2022-01-17 FreeNews

CMC- Antigua & Barbuda Tourism Minister Charles “Max” Fernandez says the local tourism industry has been dealt yet another blow following news that US-based carrier, JetBlue, will be canceling flights to Antigua and Barbuda. This comes after Air Canada’s cancellation of flights to the region.

The airline indicated it is mostly cutting routes it had added during the pandemic in the hopes of luring more passengers even as the number of flights had dropped. Between January 6 2020, and January 4 2021, it said, there was a 43.5 per cent decrease in scheduled flights worldwide.

About 65 per cent of the slashed routes are to Latin American and Caribbean destinations.

In a recent statement, the Tourism Minister said the move by the airline affects a number of destinations and was not a direct indictment against Antigua and Barbuda.

“But it is not good news for air arrivals…I think it is all a result of what is happening with the Omicron virus. It is very contagious and there is a tremendous amount of absenteeism and I believe they are cutting back because they have no staff,” he said.

JetBlue’s announcement comes just over a week after Air Canada announced its cancellation of flights to Antigua and Barbuda and other sun destinations.

He however said that on the brighter side, Canada-based airline, Sunwing, is returning to the destination as of Saturday, and will be operating weekly flights to the island.

“One hundred and forty passengers will be on the flight,” Fernandez said.

“This is good news to put alongside what is happening. Within another month or so, it is believed that the fourth wave [of Covid] would have started to decline and we are anticipating that this would allow for those who postpone their holidays [to] reschedule,” he added.

The post Antigua: Tourism Minister Concerned Over Airline Caribbean Flight Cancellations appeared first on The St Kitts Nevis Observer.

headline

Is COVID-19 Becoming Endemic?, T&T Mass Protests, UK Isolation Changes, World Stats, More

2022-01-17 FreeNews

Endemic Covid: Is the pandemic entering its endgame

by James Gallagher

BBC

Who hasn’t let out an exasperated “Is the pandemic finished yet?” or a “When can I just get on with my life?” over the past two years? I know I have.

The answer to those questions could be… very soon.

There is growing confidence that Omicron could be hurtling the UK into the pandemic endgame.

But what comes next? There will be no snap of the fingers to make the virus disappear. Instead, the new buzzword we’ll have to get used to is “endemic” – which means that Covid is, without doubt, here to stay.

So, is a new Covid-era truly imminent and what will that actually mean for our lives?

“We’re almost there, it is now the beginning of the end, at least in the UK,” Prof Julian Hiscox, chairman in infection and global health at the University of Liverpool, tells me. “I think life in 2022 will be almost back to before the pandemic.”

What’s changing is our immunity. The new coronavirus first emerged two years ago in Wuhan, China, and we were vulnerable. It was a completely new virus that our immune systems had not experienced before and we had no drugs or vaccines to help.

The result was like taking a flamethrower into a fireworks factory. Covid spread explosively around the world – but that fire cannot burn at such high intensity forever.

There were two options – either we would extinguish Covid, as we did with Ebola in West Africa, or it would die down but be with us for the long term. It would join the swarm of endemic diseases – such as common colds, HIV, measles, malaria and tuberculosis – that are always there.

infographic showing pandemic, endemic and epidemic disease patterns

For many, this was the inevitable fate of a virus that spreads through the air before you even know you’re sick. “Endemicity was written into this virus,” says Dr Elisabetta Groppelli, a virologist at St George’s, University of London.

“I am very optimistic,” she says. “We’ll soon be in a situation where the virus is circulating, we will take care of people at risk, but for anybody else we accept they will catch it – and your average person will be fine.”

Epidemiologists, who study the spread of diseases, would consider a disease endemic when levels are consistent and predictable – unlike the “boom and bust” waves so far in the pandemic.

But Prof Azra Ghani, an epidemiologist at Imperial College London, says other people are using it to mean Covid is still around, but that we no longer need to restrict our lives.

She thinks we’ll get there “rapidly”, adding: “It seems like it’s taken a long time, but only a year ago we started vaccinating and we’re already an awful lot freer because of that.”

The only major curve ball would be a new variant that can outcompete Omicron and cause significantly more severe disease.

How bad?

It is important to remember that endemic does not automatically mean mild. “We have some huge killer diseases that we consider endemic,” says Prof Ghani. Smallpox was endemic for thousands of years and killed a third of people who were infected. Malaria is endemic and causes around 600,000 deaths a year.

But we are already seeing the signs that Covid is becoming less deadly as our bodies become more familiar with fighting it.

In the UK there has been a vaccination campaign, a booster campaign and waves of Covid involving four different variants of the virus.

“When Omicron has finished and moved through, immunity in the UK will be high, at least for a while,” says Prof Eleanor Riley, an immunologist at the University of Edinburgh.

The high level of infections has come at a price, with more than 150,000 deaths in the UK. But it has left a protective legacy in our immune systems. That immunity will wane so we should expect to catch Covid in the future, but it should still reduce the chances of becoming seriously ill.

Prof Hiscox – who sits on the government’s New and Emerging Respiratory Virus Threats Advisory Group – says that means most people won’t be badly affected.

“Should a new variant or old variant come along, for most of us, like any other common cold coronavirus, we’ll get the sniffles and a bit of a headache and then we’re OK.”

What will it mean for our lives?

There will be people – mostly the old and vulnerable – who will die from endemic Covid. So there is still a decision to be made about how we live alongside it.

“If you’re willing to tolerate zero deaths from Covid, then we’re facing a whole raft of restrictions and it’s not game over,” Prof Hiscox explains.

But, he says, “In a bad flu season, 200-300 die a day over winter and nobody wears a mask or socially distances, that’s perhaps a right line to draw in the sand.”

Lockdowns and restrictions on mass gatherings will not come back and mass testing for Covid will end this year, he expects.

The near certainty is there will be booster vaccines for the vulnerable come the autumn in order to top up their protection through winter.

“We need to accept the fact that our flu season is also going to be a coronavirus season, and that is going to be a challenge for us,” says Dr Groppelli.

However, it is still uncertain how bad winters will be as the people who die from flu and Covid tend to be the same. As one scientist put it, “You can’t die twice.”

Prof Riley thinks we won’t be compelled to wear face masks after Omicron, but they will become “a much more common sight” as they are in parts of Asia as people choose to wear them in crowded places.

She adds: “The likely scenario is life won’t look much different to the autumn of 2019, when we all turned up for our flu vaccines.”

What about the rest of the world?

While the UK is ahead of most of the world due to a combination of vaccines and a large number of infections, the planet is not remotely close to seeing the end of the pandemic.

Poorer countries are still waiting for vaccines to give to their most vulnerable people. Meanwhile countries that kept Covid at arms’ length have had very few deaths, but also have less immunity in their populations.

The World Health Organization has been clear the world is a long way off describing Covid as endemic.

“For the world it is still a pandemic and an acute emergency,” Dr Groppelli concludes.

=====================================================

T&T: Hundreds protest against COVID policies, several held by police

CMC

Several people were held by the police on Sunday as they mounted a protest against the government’s handling of the COVID-19 pandemic in Trinidad and Tobago.

The protest – dubbed the “Push Back” protest, got underway early Sunday with hundreds marching around the Queen’s Park Savannah in solidarity against Prime Minister Dr Keith Rowley’s handling of the pandemic and the vaccination policy for government workers.

Chanting “Rowley must go“, the protesters were led by social activist Umar Abdullah of the First Wave Movement.

According to the police, Abdullah and his supporters were asked to leave, as they did not have a permit from the acting Commissioner of Police to protest. However, the crowd persisted and the march went on.

The police say that shortly after 2 pm (local time), after several attempts were made to disperse the large crowd, the riot police were called in and officers began detaining protesters, while other officers fired tear gas canisters at the crowd.

The protest took place just hours after Rowley announced that the government has delayed the implementation of its vaccine policy for public health workers until mid-February.

The policy was originally slated to come into effect on Monday.

Speaking late Saturday, Rowley also announced the establishment of a five-member team to investigate the factors contributing to the clinical outcomes of COVID-19 patients.

UK Self-isolation rule changes

Self-isolation rules for anyone testing positive for Covid have been cut in England to five full days in a bid to help tackle staff shortages. But quarantine only ends when lateral flow tests give negative results on days five and six. The change was introduced by the government after a review of the medical evidence. Meanwhile, in Scotland large outdoor events like football matches can take place again after rules were relaxed.

Djokovic’s visa ban

After being deported from Australia on Sunday over his visa battle around his Covid vaccine status, Novak Djokovic could return to the country before his three-year ban is up. The unvaccinated top tennis player won’t be playing in the Australian Open but Prime Minister Scott Morrison says he could be allowed entry sooner than three years under the “right circumstances”.

Novak Djokovic (centre) at Dubai's airport. Photo: 17 January 2022

Cooking through Covid

After moving to New York five years ago, Emre Uzundag and Yonca Cubuk became homesick during lockdown. Spending a lot of time in their apartment, the husband and wife team started cooking more Turkish foods to help them cope with the stresses of the pandemic. After some rave reviews they decided to launch a takeaway from their kitchen, and a food delivery app gave them a platform to tell their story. Take a look.

===============================================

WORLD STATS

Coronavirus Cases:

328,936,055

view by country

Deaths:

5,558,861

Recovered:

267,791,398

#	Country, Other	Total Cases	New Cases	Total Deaths	New Deaths	Total Recovered	New Recovered	Active Cases	Serious, Critical	Tot Cases/ 1M pop	Deaths/ 1M pop	Total Tests	Tests/ 1M pop	Population
	World	328,936,055	+258,361	5,558,861	+1,255	267,791,398	+168,492	55,585,796	96,065	42,199	713.2
1	USA	66,995,533		873,564		43,090,644		23,031,325	25,780	200,590	2,616	858,706,919	2,571,033	333,993,010
2	India	37,380,253		486,482		35,237,461		1,656,310	8,944	26,683	347	703,762,282	502,364	1,400,902,277
3	Brazil	23,006,952		621,099		21,710,831		675,022	8,318	107,065	2,890	63,776,166	296,789	214,887,107
4	UK	15,217,280		151,987		11,389,181		3,676,112	777	222,360	2,221	430,233,640	6,286,709	68,435,429
5	France	14,172,384		126,967		9,019,484		5,025,933	3,895	216,385	1,939	211,520,605	3,229,516	65,496,070
6	Russia	10,834,260	+30,726	321,990	+670	9,878,371	+19,756	633,899	2,300	74,192	2,205	246,800,000	1,690,053	146,030,890
7	Turkey	10,457,164		84,758		9,665,504		706,902	1,128	121,968	989	125,029,654	1,458,296	85,736,822
8	Italy	8,706,915		141,104		6,016,954		2,548,857	1,691	144,334	2,339	155,797,197	2,582,639	60,324,816
9	Spain	8,093,036		90,759		5,249,372		2,752,905	2,224	172,992	1,940	66,213,858	1,415,350	46,782,685
10	Germany	7,991,432		116,268		7,000,000	+36,300	875,164	3,212	94,914	1,381	89,622,218	1,064,438	84,196,733
11	Argentina	7,094,865		118,040		6,081,081		895,744	2,036	154,793	2,575	30,511,664	665,691	45,834,595
12	Iran	6,221,033		132,075		6,064,646		24,312	1,345	72,634	1,542	42,908,102	500,979	85,648,498
13	Colombia	5,543,796		130,996		5,220,543		192,257	342	107,192	2,533	31,070,883	600,773	51,718,199
14	Mexico	4,368,314	+19,132	301,410	+76	3,443,884	+23,704	623,020	4,798	33,341	2,301	13,140,039	100,291	131,019,145
15	Poland	4,313,036		102,305		3,790,377		420,354	1,558	114,154	2,708	28,535,750	755,259	37,782,733
16	Indonesia	4,271,649		144,170		4,118,874		8,605		15,367	519	67,445,921	242,630	277,978,381
17	Ukraine	3,759,530	+5,072	98,361	+78	3,556,162	+2,520	105,007	177	86,767	2,270	17,182,817	396,568	43,328,816
18	Netherlands	3,568,999		21,155		2,930,973		616,871	333	207,581	1,230	21,107,399	1,227,653	17,193,292
19	South Africa	3,559,230		93,364		3,371,004		94,862	546	58,869	1,544	21,797,292	360,523	60,460,228
20	Philippines	3,242,374	+37,070	52,929	+23	2,898,507	+33,940	290,938	1,371	28,995	473	26,337,108	235,517	111,826,995
21	Malaysia	2,808,347		31,793		2,735,355		41,199	182	85,090	963	42,952,934	1,301,423	33,004,591
22	Canada	2,759,719		31,530		2,366,673		361,516	752	72,146	824	54,722,072	1,430,572	38,251,891
23	Czechia	2,603,766	+7,235	36,874	+12	2,437,680	+43	129,212	273	242,445	3,433	48,143,090	4,482,766	10,739,595
24	Peru	2,562,534		203,376		N/A	N/A	N/A	1,029	76,087	6,039	23,133,453	686,879	33,679,091
25	Belgium	2,410,731		28,612		1,961,548	+10,040	420,571	406	206,622	2,452	28,436,961	2,437,314	11,667,337
26	Thailand	2,331,414	+6,929	21,941	+13	2,227,266	+5,255	82,207	588	33,273	313	17,270,775	246,479	70,069,857
27	Iraq	2,114,313		24,247		2,069,890		20,176	64	50,811	583	17,044,309	409,608	41,611,276
28	Vietnam	2,023,546		35,609		1,727,290		260,647	5,113	20,505	361	76,176,966	771,900	98,687,645
29	Romania	1,903,428		59,240		1,776,122		68,066	474	99,970	3,111	22,705,086	1,192,500	19,039,900
30	Portugal	1,884,974		19,303		1,538,316		327,355	168	185,695	1,902	27,780,292	2,736,735	10,150,890
31	Japan	1,879,839	+26,881	18,433	+2	1,735,909	+8,445	125,497	243	14,934	146	30,580,630	242,935	125,879,766
32	Chile	1,876,610		39,394		1,749,715		87,501	411	96,887	2,034	28,444,502	1,468,561	19,368,968
33	Australia	1,801,101	+73,258	2,699	+31	663,745		1,134,657	410	69,392	104	58,965,530	2,271,789	25,955,543
34	Israel	1,792,137		8,318		1,530,716		253,103	446	192,166	892	41,373,364	4,436,346	9,326,000
35	Greece	1,660,871		21,984		1,323,035		315,852	680	160,555	2,125	52,763,332	5,100,574	10,344,588
36	Switzerland	1,659,220		12,566		1,161,688	+9,125	484,966	268	189,579	1,436	15,372,970	1,756,484	8,752,124
37	Bangladesh	1,617,711		28,144		1,552,893		36,674	1,349	9,674	168	11,861,425	70,935	167,216,580
38	Sweden	1,560,363		15,470		1,239,536		305,357	101	153,033	1,517	16,009,781	1,570,159	10,196,282
39	Austria	1,443,589		13,920		1,295,738		133,931	212	158,888	1,532	131,737,166	14,499,604	9,085,570
40	Serbia	1,436,395		13,071		1,282,153		141,171	99	165,424	1,505	7,634,520	879,236	8,683,131
41	Hungary	1,348,233	+21,219	40,507	+270	1,169,775	+11,266	137,951	270	140,112	4,210	9,530,346	990,418	9,622,548
42	Pakistan	1,328,487	+4,340	29,019	+7	1,263,791	+207	35,677	781	5,840	128	24,186,508	106,317	227,493,671
43	Ireland	1,103,489		6,035		638,108		459,346	88	219,699	1,202	10,485,477	2,087,603	5,022,735
44	Jordan	1,100,967		12,986		1,061,250		26,731	608	106,280	1,254	14,095,738	1,360,704	10,359,149
45	Denmark	1,093,978		3,494		811,263		279,221	59	187,852	600	114,846,094	19,720,706	5,823,630
46	Kazakhstan	1,061,432	+11,524	13,081	+4	972,495	+1,712	75,856	528	55,507	684	11,575,012	605,306	19,122,594
47	Morocco	1,048,653		14,976		977,695		55,982	293	27,901	398	11,237,010	298,981	37,584,326
48	Georgia	999,343	+3,656	14,481	+32	931,507	+3,066	53,355		251,257	3,641	13,604,242	3,420,414	3,977,367
49	Cuba	999,193		8,340		974,345		16,508	46	88,299	737	12,217,274	1,079,650	11,315,962
50	Slovakia	879,656		17,300		827,309		35,047	381	161,000	3,166	5,257,797	962,311	5,463,717
51	Nepal	853,738		11,620		816,438		25,680	114	28,512	388	5,004,234	167,123	29,943,473
52	Bulgaria	820,608		32,086		637,045		151,477	557	119,486	4,672	7,938,957	1,155,963	6,867,827
53	Lebanon	820,170		9,383		682,977		127,810	186	120,999	1,384	4,795,578	707,486	6,778,338
54	Croatia	817,435		13,118		748,818		55,499	224	201,029	3,226	3,990,460	981,361	4,066,249
55	UAE	805,248		2,191		760,268		42,789		79,930	217	117,550,794	11,668,230	10,074,432
56	Tunisia	780,746		25,777		703,514		51,455	118	65,013	2,146	3,636,279	302,794	12,009,091
57	Bolivia	749,070		20,238		590,186		138,646	220	62,851	1,698	2,653,186	222,616	11,918,209
58	Belarus	715,643		5,824		708,700		1,119		75,773	617	11,339,787	1,200,672	9,444,533
59	S. Korea	696,032	+3,858	6,333	+23	584,537	+1,870	105,162	579	13,558	123	15,804,065	307,848	51,337,177
60	Guatemala	653,171		16,176		612,914		24,081	5	35,449	878	3,420,999	185,665	18,425,672
61	Azerbaijan	625,726		8,521		608,514		8,691		60,869	829	6,006,500	584,293	10,279,949
62	Saudi Arabia	615,430		8,906		564,947		41,577	336	17,264	250	35,353,849	991,732	35,648,604
63	Ecuador	614,032		34,219		N/A	N/A	N/A	759	34,008	1,895	2,187,626	121,161	18,055,538
64	Costa Rica	609,882		7,406		564,198		38,278	62	118,062	1,434	3,105,720	601,211	5,165,770
65	Sri Lanka	596,347		15,211		568,210		12,926		27,671	706	5,726,599	265,716	21,551,584
66	Panama	574,856		7,520		510,371		56,965	35	130,077	1,702	4,825,959	1,092,009	4,419,339
67	Lithuania	570,602	+2,603	7,660	+4	516,839	+282	46,103	84	214,211	2,876	6,886,302	2,585,200	2,663,741
68	Slovenia	533,334		5,697		460,846		66,791	157	256,487	2,740	2,225,642	1,070,340	2,079,378
69	Myanmar	533,144		19,302		511,211		2,631		9,699	351	6,203,992	112,858	54,971,728
70	Uruguay	512,841		6,243		425,044		81,554	68	146,850	1,788	4,805,736	1,376,103	3,492,279
71	Norway	512,393		1,381		88,952		422,060	76	93,391	252	9,641,288	1,757,261	5,486,543
72	Paraguay	501,189		16,821		451,120		33,248	81	68,963	2,315	2,171,399	298,784	7,267,463
73	Dominican Republic	498,583		4,268		459,470		34,845	225	45,262	387	2,783,959	252,732	11,015,464
74	Kuwait	465,331		2,476		421,442		41,413	26	106,536	567	6,445,278	1,475,630	4,367,814
75	Ethiopia	457,322		7,147		373,622		76,553	435	3,832	60	4,255,823	35,660	119,344,241
76	Venezuela	455,023		5,380		438,541		11,102	681	16,072	190	3,359,014	118,644	28,311,772
77	Palestine	445,383		4,750		435,596		5,037	57	84,291	899	2,919,520	552,535	5,283,869
78	Mongolia	409,215	+1,673	2,086	+1	313,256		93,873	192	121,806	621	4,030,048	1,199,574	3,359,566
79	Egypt	400,076		22,148		333,529		44,399	122	3,799	210	3,693,367	35,073	105,305,167
80	Libya	397,319		5,841		384,473		7,005	129	56,637	833	2,099,850	299,330	7,015,171
81	Moldova	388,959		10,444		366,904		11,611	131	96,768	2,598	2,486,339	618,567	4,019,514
82	Honduras	384,077		10,454		126,927		246,696	105	37,851	1,030	1,164,276	114,739	10,147,132
83	Finland	371,135		1,724		46,000		323,411	61	66,823	310	9,042,453	1,628,102	5,553,983
84	Armenia	347,785	+168	8,020	+1	333,655	+46	6,110		117,029	2,699	2,644,655	889,924	2,971,777
85	Kenya	317,634		5,488		284,727		27,419	53	5,713	99	3,147,823	56,622	55,593,803
86	Bosnia and Herzegovina	313,185		13,741		192,218		107,226		96,383	4,229	1,549,878	476,978	3,249,367
87	Oman	312,425		4,122		302,178		6,125	25	58,877	777	25,000,000	4,711,288	5,306,405
88	Bahrain	308,008		1,398		286,799		19,811	5	171,833	780	8,383,186	4,676,862	1,792,481
89	Latvia	303,794		4,730		272,442		26,622	78	163,854	2,551	5,785,119	3,120,250	1,854,056
90	Qatar	299,242		626		258,017		40,599	91	106,575	223	3,264,723	1,162,731	2,807,805
91	Zambia	296,132		3,860		275,975		16,297	204	15,443	201	3,113,612	162,372	19,175,746
92	Singapore	291,849		843		283,881		7,125	12	49,289	142	21,098,774	3,563,248	5,921,220
93	Estonia	267,095		1,979		235,916		29,200	23	201,139	1,490	2,651,024	1,996,388	1,327,910
94	Nigeria	250,929		3,103		224,052		23,774	11	1,173	15	3,933,209	18,380	213,999,218
95	North Macedonia	244,632		8,100		220,400		16,132		117,429	3,888	1,706,696	819,250	2,083,242
96	Botswana	237,678		2,514		226,828		8,336	1	98,024	1,037	2,026,898	835,938	2,424,700
97	Albania	232,637		3,269		208,201		21,167	23	80,975	1,138	1,576,865	548,865	2,872,955
98	Zimbabwe	226,078		5,247		207,102		13,729	12	14,877	345	1,933,314	127,225	15,196,063
99	Algeria	226,057		6,412		154,790		64,855	45	5,016	142	230,861	5,122	45,069,892
100	Cyprus	225,738		681		124,370		100,687	60	184,895	558	9,477,138	7,762,426	1,220,899
101	Mozambique	219,081		2,127		180,990		35,964	13	6,720	65	1,182,617	36,274	32,602,113
102	Uzbekistan	206,122	+1,037	1,518	+3	199,193	+448	5,411	23	6,024	44	1,377,915	40,271	34,216,067
103	Montenegro	203,746		2,474		187,560		13,712	60	324,339	3,938	1,070,491	1,704,093	628,188
104	Kyrgyzstan	190,468	+781	2,833	+3	181,072	+102	6,563	131	28,471	423	1,907,195	285,086	6,689,903
105	Afghanistan	158,717		7,379		145,964		5,374	1,124	3,941	183	836,081	20,758	40,277,292
106	Uganda	158,238		3,411		98,921		55,906	164	3,299	71	2,265,977	47,245	47,961,847
107	Namibia	154,378		3,821		142,366		8,191	37	59,109	1,463	901,517	345,179	2,611,735
108	Ghana	153,514		1,343		143,151		9,020	5	4,787	42	2,158,619	67,307	32,071,079
109	Rwanda	125,166		1,408		45,522		78,236	9	9,309	105	4,311,847	320,676	13,446,129
110	Laos	124,731		495		7,660		116,576		16,769	67	948,685	127,544	7,438,118
111	El Salvador	123,577		3,834		116,742		3,001	49	18,905	587	1,557,257	238,235	6,536,629
112	Luxembourg	123,340		934		101,563		20,843	18	192,221	1,456	3,885,408	6,055,282	641,656
113	Cambodia	120,825	+29	3,015		117,118	+16	692		7,076	177	2,783,948	163,040	17,075,251
114	Jamaica	112,218		2,530		67,142		42,546	7	37,643	849	757,491	254,099	2,981,081
115	Cameroon	109,666		1,853		106,050		1,763	13	3,979	67	1,751,774	63,557	27,562,363
116	China	105,087	+223	4,636		96,957	+190	3,494	15	73	3	160,000,000	111,163	1,439,323,776
117	Maldives	103,581		265		97,328		5,988	25	186,566	477	1,956,025	3,523,106	555,199
118	Réunion	102,216		435		75,943		25,838	34	112,927	481	1,424,291	1,573,533	905,155
119	Trinidad and Tobago	100,994		3,197		80,981		16,816	22	71,807	2,273	541,809	385,226	1,406,471
120	Angola	93,694		1,863		83,256		8,575	13	2,721	54	1,331,307	38,658	34,438,114
121	Malawi	82,719		2,466		65,138		15,115	67	4,159	124	514,461	25,865	19,890,313
122	Senegal	82,712		1,908		75,619		5,185	6	4,747	110	954,522	54,786	17,422,603
123	DRC	82,306		1,225		50,930		30,151		878	13	846,704	9,032	93,747,924
124	Ivory Coast	79,088		753		73,648		4,687		2,888	27	1,316,977	48,094	27,383,116
125	Guadeloupe	73,959		753		2,250		70,956	23	184,792	1,881	723,515	1,807,753	400,229
126	Eswatini	67,849		1,363		65,752		734	11	57,564	1,156	445,143	377,667	1,178,666
127	French Guiana	67,275		348		11,254		55,673	14	216,604	1,120	533,366	1,717,267	310,590
128	Suriname	63,878	+435	1,213	+1	49,147	+4	13,518	12	107,407	2,040	194,193	326,524	594,728
129	Malta	63,710		506		52,872		10,332	8	143,700	1,141	1,211,456	2,732,474	443,355
130	Martinique	59,583		795		104		58,684	1	158,966	2,121	488,892	1,304,349	374,817
131	Fiji	59,418		730		52,896		5,792		65,550	805	485,503	535,608	906,452
132	Madagascar	55,138		1,169		50,381		3,588	224	1,915	41	352,115	12,232	28,786,030
133	Mauritania	54,991		908		41,800		12,283	30	11,367	188	636,906	131,656	4,837,643
134	Cabo Verde	53,987		372		50,172		3,443	23	95,504	658	400,982	709,341	565,288
135	Guyana	51,203		1,095		39,533		10,575	12	64,618	1,382	470,617	593,913	792,400
136	Sudan	50,984		3,358		40,329		7,297		1,122	74	562,941	12,393	45,424,423
137	Syria	50,710		2,947		34,597		13,166		2,793	162	146,269	8,057	18,154,681
138	French Polynesia	47,009		636		N/A	N/A	N/A	7	165,869	2,244			283,410
139	Gabon	45,152		297		39,532		5,323	20	19,576	129	1,517,236	657,799	2,306,533
140	Iceland	44,974		44		35,260		9,670	8	130,490	128	1,477,841	4,287,885	344,655
141	Belize	40,612		608		32,429		7,575	4	99,359	1,488	418,748	1,024,488	408,739
142	Papua New Guinea	36,435		596		35,786		53	7	3,957	65	249,149	27,058	9,207,880
143	Burundi	36,257		38		773		35,446		2,916	3	345,742	27,803	12,435,326
144	Togo	35,950		261		28,934		6,755		4,191	30	646,496	75,373	8,577,242
145	Channel Islands	35,903		122		31,548		4,233		203,611	692	1,161,014	6,584,288	176,331
146	Barbados	35,373		269		29,782		5,322		122,858	934	502,240	1,744,392	287,917
147	Guinea	35,202		406		30,929		3,867	49	2,573	30	578,214	42,265	13,680,666
148	Mayotte	33,757		186		2,964		30,607		119,307	657	176,919	625,284	282,942
149	Curaçao	32,892		202		21,287		11,403	3	199,192	1,223	422,498	2,558,625	165,127
150	Lesotho	31,734		687		19,915		11,132		14,635	317	364,750	168,211	2,168,410
151	Seychelles	31,098		136		25,416		5,546		313,220	1,370			99,285
152	Bahamas	30,850		719		23,052		7,079	7	77,312	1,802	201,237	504,313	399,032
153	Aruba	30,677		184		28,993		1,500	9	285,463	1,712	177,885	1,655,299	107,464
154	Tanzania	30,564		740		N/A	N/A	N/A	7	490	12			62,350,715
155	Andorra	29,888		142		24,030		5,716	31	385,876	1,833	249,838	3,225,589	77,455
156	Mali	28,585		691		23,944		3,950		1,352	33	572,090	27,052	21,147,792
157	Haiti	27,082		780		23,891		2,411		2,331	67	132,422	11,399	11,616,595
158	Benin	26,036		162		25,033		841	5	2,064	13	604,310	47,917	12,611,618
159	Mauritius	24,850		762		22,635		1,453		19,490	598	358,675	281,309	1,275,020
160	Somalia	24,261		1,335		13,182		9,744		1,464	81	400,466	24,161	16,575,138
161	Congo	22,969		371		18,993		3,605		4,011	65	328,562	57,370	5,727,029
162	Burkina Faso	20,195		339		18,596		1,260		927	16	242,231	11,119	21,784,812
163	Timor-Leste	19,863		122		19,715		26		14,636	90	226,374	166,808	1,357,095
164	Taiwan	17,885	+65	851		16,099	+19	935		749	36	9,802,499	410,435	23,883,199
165	Nicaragua	17,563		214		4,225		13,124		2,603	32			6,745,934
166	Saint Lucia	17,250		314		13,867		3,069	3	93,284	1,698	117,691	636,443	184,920
167	Tajikistan	17,095		124		16,966		5		1,732	13			9,867,259
168	South Sudan	16,489		136		12,934		3,419	1	1,447	12	310,727	27,267	11,395,838
169	Brunei	15,750		98		15,381		271	1	35,478	221	697,770	1,571,798	443,931
170	Equatorial Guinea	15,319		178		13,539		1,602	5	10,394	121	273,437	185,527	1,473,840
171	New Zealand	15,127	+58	52		14,051	+59	1,024	17	3,024	10	5,798,908	1,159,295	5,002,100
172	Djibouti	14,900		189		14,119		592		14,751	187	267,062	264,386	1,010,122
173	Isle of Man	14,126		70		13,755		301	1	164,781	817	133,676	1,559,340	85,726
174	New Caledonia	13,829	+293	282	+1	12,746	+136	801	11	47,731	973	98,964	341,578	289,726
175	CAR	13,319		108		6,859		6,352	2	2,686	22	74,519	15,027	4,959,032
176	Hong Kong	13,041		213		12,327		501		1,718	28	31,341,334	4,128,926	7,590,675
177	Cayman Islands	11,666		15		8,093		3,558	6	174,351	224	215,963	3,227,616	66,911
178	Gambia	11,122		344		9,844		934	4	4,412	136	135,608	53,790	2,521,079
179	Gibraltar	10,833		100		8,933		1,800	6	321,693	2,970	470,560	13,973,571	33,675
180	San Marino	10,350		103		8,495		1,752	5	304,045	3,026	114,526	3,364,355	34,041
181	Yemen	10,252		1,990		7,045		1,217	23	332	65	265,253	8,602	30,836,739
182	Faeroe Islands	10,169		15		7,693		2,461	5	206,901	305	695,000	14,140,674	49,149
183	Grenada	9,701		203		6,114		3,384		85,603	1,791	112,436	992,147	113,326
184	Eritrea	8,910		87		8,326		497		2,460	24	23,693	6,541	3,622,000
185	Bermuda	8,541		110		6,549		1,882		137,929	1,776	728,035	11,757,102	61,923
186	Sint Maarten	8,530		75		5,837		2,618	10	195,526	1,719	62,056	1,422,454	43,626
187	Niger	8,386		292		7,328		766	1	328	11	211,754	8,287	25,553,242
188	Dominica	7,957		48		7,262		647		110,115	664	136,754	1,892,501	72,261
189	Greenland	7,871		3		2,761		5,107	9	138,277	53	159,603	2,803,890	56,922
190	Comoros	7,767	+11	159		7,096	+116	512		8,648	177			898,106
191	Saint Martin	7,713		60		1,399		6,254	7	194,375	1,512	78,366	1,974,900	39,681
192	Sierra Leone	7,542		125		N/A	N/A	N/A		917	15	259,958	31,600	8,226,630
193	Liechtenstein	7,201		72		6,582		547	5	188,030	1,880	80,413	2,099,721	38,297
194	Liberia	7,121		287		5,747		1,087	2	1,359	55	139,824	26,681	5,240,570
195	Guinea-Bissau	7,004		152		6,337		515		3,434	75	114,550	56,164	2,039,562
196	Monaco	6,756		44		6,257		455	4	170,301	1,109	54,960	1,385,395	39,671
197	St. Vincent Grenadines	6,581		85		5,574		922	7	59,031	762	94,386	846,640	111,483
198	Chad	6,556		185		4,874		1,497		382	11	191,341	11,156	17,150,683
199	Caribbean Netherlands	5,561		26		4,596		939		209,076	978	30,126	1,132,642	26,598
200	Sao Tome and Principe	5,525		66		4,054		1,405		24,509	293	29,036	128,807	225,423
201	Antigua and Barbuda	5,321		120		4,175		1,026	1	53,651	1,210	18,685	188,399	99,178
202	British Virgin Islands	5,255		42		N/A	N/A	N/A	8	172,064	1,375	96,147	3,148,129	30,541
203	Turks and Caicos	5,110	+85	30		4,156	+6	924	3	129,289	759	94,789	2,398,264	39,524
204	Saint Kitts and Nevis	4,933		28		3,596		1,309	1	91,727	521	63,535	1,181,409	53,779
205	Bhutan	2,928		3		2,654		271		3,731	4	1,343,920	1,712,668	784,694
206	St. Barth	2,927		6		N/A	N/A	N/A		294,971	605	56,491	5,692,936	9,923
207	Anguilla	2,109		7		1,913		189		138,668	460	51,382	3,378,394	15,209
208	Diamond Princess	712		13		699		0
209	Wallis and Futuna	454		7		438		9		41,514	640	20,508	1,875,274	10,936
210	Saint Pierre Miquelon	415				217		198		72,174		15,956	2,774,957	5,750
211	Montserrat	139		1		74		64	2	27,817	200	7,329	1,466,680	4,997
212	Palau	119				19		100		6,529		19,159	1,051,133	18,227
213	Falkland Islands	85				N/A	N/A	N/A		23,377		8,528	2,345,435	3,636
214	Macao	79				77		2		119		5,075	7,655	662,965
215	Vatican City	27				27		0		33,582				804
216	Solomon Islands	25				20		5		35		4,500	6,313	712,797
217	Western Sahara	10		1		8		1		16	2			619,932
218	MS Zaandam	9		2		7		0
219	Vanuatu	7		1		6		0		22	3	23,000	72,285	318,187
220	Marshall Islands	7				4		3		117				59,805
221	Samoa	3				3		0		15				200,445
222	Saint Helena	2				2		0		328				6,105
223	Micronesia	1				1		0		9				116,880
224	Tonga	1				1		0		9				107,540
	Total:	328,936,055	+258,361	5,558,861	+1,255	267,791,398	+168,492	55,585,796	96,065	42,199.4	713.2

Highlighted in green

= all cases have recovered from the infection

Highlighted in grey

= all cases have had an outcome (there are no active cases)

[back to top ↑]

Latest News

January 17 (GMT)

Updates

30,726 new cases and 670 new deaths in Russia [source]

37,070 new cases and 23 new deaths in the Philippines [source]

2,603 new cases and 4 new deaths in Lithuania [source]

21,219 new cases and 270 new deaths in Hungary [source]

168 new cases and 1 new death in Armenia [source]

3,656 new cases and 32 new deaths in Georgia [source]

7,235 new cases and 12 new deaths in Czechia [source]

293 new cases and 1 new death in New Caledonia [source]

5,072 new cases and 78 new deaths in Ukraine [source]

65 new cases in Taiwan [source]

781 new cases and 3 new deaths in Kyrgyzstan [source]

1,037 new cases and 3 new deaths in Uzbekistan [source]

29 new cases in Cambodia [source] [source]

11 new cases in Comoros [source]

73,258 new cases and 31 new deaths in Australia [source]

4,340 new cases and 7 new deaths in Pakistan [source]

11,524 new cases and 4 new deaths in Kazakhstan [source]

1,673 new cases and 1 new death in Mongolia [source]

85 new cases in the Turks and Caicos Islands [source]

26,881 new cases and 2 new deaths in Japan [source]

435 new cases and 1 new death in Suriname [source]

6,929 new cases and 13 new deaths in Thailand [source]

19,132 new cases and 76 new deaths in Mexico [source]

3,858 new cases and 23 new deaths in South Korea [source]

58 new cases in New Zealand [source]

223 new cases in China [source]

Archived:

January 2020 – February 2020

Get a longer daily news briefing from the BBC in your inbox, each weekday morning, by signing up here.

The post Is COVID-19 Becoming Endemic?, T&T Mass Protests, UK Isolation Changes, World Stats, More appeared first on The St Kitts Nevis Observer.

headline

Martinique with More Than 7,000 COVID-19 Cases in One Week

2022-01-15 FreeNews

Martinique has recorded an explosion of new COVID-19 cases with 2,235 new confirmed cases recorded in 24 hours.

According to the Agence Regionale de Sante (ARS), there are 112 hospitalisations and 35 patients in critical condition.

The total number of deaths since the start of the epidemic is 805.

ARS states the indicators related to the number of deaths have to be interpreted with caution due to the time in registration in administrative software by hospital institutions.

Throughout this week Martinique has posted high COVID-19 figures:

On January 13 – 1,117 new cases recorded in 24 hours
On January 12 – 2,301 new cases recorded in 24 hours
On January 11- 1, 246 new cases recorded in 24 hours
On January 10- 1,842 new cases recorded in 24 hours

The French Caribbean Island since March 2020 has recorded 65,380 confirmed cases.

On Wednesday, PAHO during its COVID-19 briefing said 42 countries and territories in all Subregions of the Americas including the Caribbean have detected the Omicron variant.

It was also noted that in the Caribbean, Puerto Rico and the Dominican Republic are reporting the highest numbers of new infections, although other islands like Jamaica, Aruba, Curaçao, and Martinique are also seeing significant jumps in COVID-19 cases.

The post Martinique with More Than 7,000 COVID-19 Cases in One Week appeared first on The St Kitts Nevis Observer.

headline

MALTA: THE CROSSROADS OF ANCIENT MEDITERRANEAN HISTORY

2022-01-14 FreeNews

TRAVEL by Eric Mackenzie Lamb

The Republic of Malta has always been one of the places I’ve wanted to visit. But due to today’s ever-changing Covid-19 restrictions on travel, the small island nation was difficult to get to. However, I did finally make it last summer. And what I saw was nothing short of fascinating. And that’s not even mentioning its history.

First, some background.Malta is an island country of the European Union consisting of an archipelago in the Mediterranean Sea. It lies 50 miles south of Italy, 176 miles east of Tunisia, and 207 miles north of Libya. With a population of around 515,000 over an area of just 122 square miles, it’s the world’s tenth smallest country in area. And its capital, Valletta, is the smallest in the E.U.

First, some background.

Malta is an island country of the European Union consisting of an archipelago in the Mediterranean Sea. It lies 50 miles south of Italy, 176 miles east of Tunisia, and 207 miles north of Libya. With a population of around 515,000 over an area of just 122 square miles, it’s the world’s tenth smallest country in area. And its capital, Valletta, is the smallest in the E.U.

**Malta’s rugged coast. Image by the author.**

The country’s national language is Maltese, which was derived from Sicilian Arabic over centuries, while English serves as its second official language. Below is an example of how strikingly different they are from each other.

Inhabited since approximately 5,900 BC, Malta’s location in the central Mediterranean has historically given the island great strategic importance as a naval base, with a succession of powers having contested and ruled the islands, including Phoenicians, Carthaginians, Romans, Greeks, Arabs, Normans, Aragonese, the Knights of St John, and the French and British. Each left an indelible mark on the country’s culture. In 58 AD, Paul the Apostle remained in Malta for three months after his ship washed up on the island’s shore during a storm. Malta has had Christianity for centuries, although it was predominantly Muslim while under Arab rule. Muslim rule ended with the invasion of the island by Roger I and the Knights of Malta in 1091. Today, Catholicism is the country’s official religion but its constitution guarantees freedom of worship for all.
Malta became a British colony in 1813, serving as a way station for ships as well as headquarters for the British Mediterranean naval fleet. During World War II, despite being besieged by the Axis powers, Malta became a strategic base for British military operations in North Africa. In 1964, the British parliament passed the Malta Independence Act. The country became a Republic in 1974 and a member state of the Commonwealth of Nations, with its own seat at the United Nations. It officially joined the European Union in 2004.When the Suez Canal opened in 1869, Malta’s strategic position, halfway between the Strait of Gibraltar and Egypt, proved to be its main asset and was considered an important stop on the way to India, a vital trade route for the British.Malta has three UNESCO World Heritage sites, as well as seven temples which are some of the oldest free standing structures in the world.

**Government offices in Valletta. Image by the author.**

Finally, something you may not know: in 1989, Malta was the venue for a historic meeting between US President George H.W. Bush and his Russian counterpart Mikhael Gorbachev, an event which marked the end of the Cold War.Oh, and lest we forget: Malta even has its own carnival during the week leading up to Ash Wednesday. A touch of Caribbean culture?

The post MALTA: THE CROSSROADS OF ANCIENT MEDITERRANEAN HISTORY appeared first on The St Kitts Nevis Observer.

headline

Caribbean Airlines New Boeing 737-8 Takes to the Sky

2022-01-14 FreeNews

Caribbean Airlines Boeing 737-8 aircraft took to the skies for the first time today, January 14. The airline’s Boeing 9Y-CAL maiden jet service departed the Piarco International Airport destined to the Norman Manley International, Kingston, Jamaica.

Earlier today Caribbean Airlines hosted a brief ceremony at the Piarco International Airport to launch the new aircraft, which offers passengers exceptional levels of convenience and comfort. The re-fleeting coincides with the airline’s 15th anniversary. Some lucky customers on the inaugural service won an extra 15,000 miles and all customers received bags of goodies and other memorabilia!

Caribbean Airlines’ CEO, Garvin Medera, in commenting said: “The introduction of this new aircraft into service, represents Caribbean Airlines’ initiative to ‘REset Expectations’ for 2022.The 737-8 is the most technologically advanced aircraft in the world and it brings a range of benefits for Caribbean Airlines, our customers, and the environment. Fuel and maintenance costs are lower, each plane has 10 more seats than its predecessor with a total of 160 seats and the aircraft offers state-of-the-art technology and an upgraded level of comfort in both the business class and economy cabin, including in seat power for mobile devices, a new sky interior, sleek modern seats and much more.”

Mr. Medera continued: “We’re really excited about the plans and improvements for the coming year, all done with you in mind. Be sure to stay informed via our social media channels and follow us on #REcalibrate as we REset Expectations in 2022.”

The post Caribbean Airlines New Boeing 737-8 Takes to the Sky appeared first on The St Kitts Nevis Observer.

headline

Newspaper Cover for 14th January, 2022

2022-01-14 FreeNews

The post Newspaper Cover for 14th January, 2022 appeared first on The St Kitts Nevis Observer.

headline

Queen Elizabeth Personally Stripped Prince Andrew of His Royal and Military Titles Over the Epstein Scandal

2022-01-14 FreeNews

by Sophia Ankel

30 minutes ago

Prince Andrew was stripped of his royal patronages and military titles on Thursday.
The Queen personally informed him in a 90-minute meeting at Windsor Castle, per the Daily Mail and NY Post.

Queen Elizabeth II personally told Prince Andrew in a 90-minute meeting that he would be stripped of his royal patronages and military titles, the Daily Mail and the New York Post reported.

The monarch summoned her second son for the meeting to Windsor Castle on Thursday morning to tell him he would no longer hold the title of His Royal Highness “in any official capacity,” the Post reported.

The Daily Mail also published photos of the Duke of York leaving his nearby home, Royal Lodge, by car.

He was accompanied by his attorney, Gary Bloxsome, who had to wait for Andrew in the parking lot as he was not allowed into Windsor Castle, the Mail reported. It is unclear why the lawyer was unable to enter the royal residence.

It is also unclear if anyone else was at the meeting.

A source told the Post the meeting was “cutting.”

“There was nothing from the Queen about her sadness or dismay, nothing emotional at all,” the Post’s source said.

Buckingham Palace on Thursday announced that Andrew had been stripped of his military titles and royal patronages and that he will defend himself from sexual-assault allegations as a private citizen. A royal source also told Insider’s Mikhaila Friel that the duke would lose his HRH status.

The palace’s announcement came days after a New York court rejected Andrew’s request to dismiss a sexual-assault lawsuit brought about by the Jeffrey Epstein accuser, Virginia Giuffre Roberts.

Giuffre, who for years has alleged that she was forced by Epstein to have sex with Andrew, filed a lawsuit against the royal in August 2021, accusing him of sexually assaulting her. Andrew has repeatedly denied those claims.

The post Queen Elizabeth Personally Stripped Prince Andrew of His Royal and Military Titles Over the Epstein Scandal appeared first on The St Kitts Nevis Observer.

headline

For US President Biden Things Go From Bad to Worse

2022-01-14 FreeNews

The Labor Department announced on Wednesday that inflation jumped at its fastest rate in nearly 40 years in December, representing a 7 percent increase from last year (The Associated Press). Hours later, a poll showed Biden’s already plummeting approval rating at a new low of 33 percent (The Hill).

Exacerbating those issues is the president’s inability to further an agenda on Capitol Hill. His latest push to reform voting rights appears to have hit a brick wall within his own party, becoming yet another example of frustration at the White House as the year begins.

Biden and Democratic leaders are nonetheless attempting to create legislative momentum. Senate Majority Leader Charles Schumer (D-N.Y.) on Wednesday laid out the party’s roadmap for bringing up election reform and voting rights legislation and, ultimately, to try to scrap the legislative filibuster to do so.

As The Hill’s Jordain Carney details, the Democratic leader is planning to use Senate procedure to bypass the 60-vote prerequisite needed to start debate by considering the bill as a “message,” a loophole that lets them bypass how many times they need to break a filibuster. While the GOP can still block it, it gives Democrats a chance to spark debate on the voting rights proposals.

“With this procedure, we will finally have an opportunity to debate voting rights legislation — something that Republicans have thus far denied,” Schumer wrote. “Of course, to ultimately end debate and pass the voting rights legislation, we will need 10 Republicans to join us — which we know from past experience will not happen — or we will need to change the Senate rules as has been done many times before.”

The move will take place after the House passes a consolidated package on Thursday in order to allow the upper chamber to give it “urgent consideration,” according to Speaker Nancy Pelosi (D-Calif.) (The Hill). Schumer has promised a vote on the bills by Monday’s Martin Luther King Jr. holiday.

Ultimately, the process is expected to be fruitless legislatively for the majority party, which has been unable to win the support of at least two Democrats — Sens. Kyrsten Sinema (Ariz.) and Joe Manchin (W.Va.) — to create a filibuster “carveout” to deal with the issue.

The post For US President Biden Things Go From Bad to Worse appeared first on The St Kitts Nevis Observer.

headline

Corona Effect: PAHO Says Healthcare Workers Must Be Protected Amid COVID-19 Surge

2022-01-14 FreeNews

CMC- With COVID-19 infections accelerating in the Americas and the detection of the Omicron variant in at least 42 countries and territories in the region, Pan American Health Organization (PAHO) Director Dr Carissa Etienne has called on countries to ensure health workers have access to protective equipment and additional vaccine doses where available.

As cases jump three-fold in some countries, the region’s ability to respond to the current wave depends on the personnel that keep primary health care centres, clinics and hospitals up and running.

“We must make sure they are protected from the worst consequences of this virus,” she said in a media briefing on Wednesday.

Over the past week, countries in the Americas reported 6.1 million new cases of COVID-19 – a 250 per cent increase from the same period last year.

Thanks to increased vaccination in the region, the COVID-19 death rate remains stable but the hike in emergency room visits and hospitalizations has left many health systems struggling to cope.

The PAHO Director highlighted that an additional vaccination dose will “help reinforce health workers’ ability to withstand exposure to the virus,” particularly in light of rising infections.

While Delta continues to cause new COVID cases in the Americas, Omicron is on track to becoming the dominant strain, spreading more quickly than other detected variants, particularly in enclosed spaces. It has already been reported in 42 countries and territories in the region, and several are now experiencing widespread community transmission.

While reports suggest that it may cause less severe symptoms, Dr Etienne warned that “this new wave of infections won’t be “mild” for our health systems, as the Omicron variant is already challenging our health workforce and limiting care for other diseases.”

“In smaller island states, some hospitals were already strained by cases of the Delta variant, and now more hospitals face the prospect of being overwhelmed with cases,” she added.

The PAHO Director also highlighted the rise in re-infections. “Omicron infections can be lethal, especially for the immunocompromised and the unvaccinated,” she said, calling on individuals to keep each other safe by following public health measures such as mask-wearing and social distancing, getting vaccinated and getting tested when experiencing symptoms.

Overall vaccination coverage in Latin America and the Caribbean currently stands at almost 60 per cent and many countries, including Cuba, boast some of the highest coverage rates in the world. However, it is vital that equitable coverage remains a priority, Dr Etienne said.

“Whether we are fighting for vaccine equity, supporting our health workers, or doing our part to reduce the risk of transmission, solidarity will pave our way out of the pandemic,” she added.

Over the past week in the Caribbean, Puerto Rico and the Dominican Republic have experienced hikes in new infections, and increases are also being seen in Jamaica, Aruba, Curacao and Martinique.

The post Corona Effect: PAHO Says Healthcare Workers Must Be Protected Amid COVID-19 Surge appeared first on The St Kitts Nevis Observer.

headline

Ukraine Talks: Russian Official Won’t Rule Out Troops In Cuba, Venezuela

2022-01-14 FreeNews

By Joseph Gobran

Russian-led forces are expected to start leaving Kazakhstan this week after being deployed to help restore order

Amid stalled talks between the U.S. and Russia over Ukraine, a top Russian official on Thursday would not rule Moscow dispatching military deployment to Venezuela and Cuba.

When questioned about Russia’s position in instituting military occupancy, Deputy Foreign Minister Sergei Ryabkov said he would not “confirm anything, [but] won’t exclude anything here either.”

“It depends on the actions of American colleagues,” Ryabkov told Russian television channel RTVI.

Diplomatic talks Monday in Geneva between the U.S. and Russia were unsuccessful in meeting Moscow’s security requirements, as Russian troops continue to expand near Ukraine. Russia is holding the West responsible for intimidating its security by deploying military hardware in Eastern and Central Europe.

“I’m not going to respond to bluster in the public commentary that wasn’t raised in the discussions at the Strategic Stability Dialogue [in Geneva],” White House national security adviser Jake Sullivan said in response to Ryabkov’s comments.

Russia has long had strong diplomatic ties with Cuba since the Cold War. The distance from Cuba and the U.S. mainland is 103 miles. In recent years, Venezuela has become an ideological battleground for Russia and China, as the U.S., the U.K., and other Western powers have not backed embattled President Nicolas Maduro.

A military buildup would be considered a threat to the U.S. “If Russia were to move in that direction, we would deal with it decisively,” Sullivan said.

The Kremlin views Ukraine as a prospective security threat as recent elections gave birth to new leadership that cut off an extensive bond with Russia, altering the country’s confederation to the West.

There are about 100,000 Russian troops near the Ukraine border. Moscow has claimed the troops are performing military exercises.

The Biden administration has previously threatened sanctions if Russia were to attack Ukraine.

“The jury’s out on which path Vladimir Putin is going to choose,” U.S. Secretary of State Antony Blinken told MSNBC. “Is he going to choose the path of diplomacy and dialogue to resolve some of these problems or is he going to pursue confrontation and aggression?”

The post Ukraine Talks: Russian Official Won’t Rule Out Troops In Cuba, Venezuela appeared first on The St Kitts Nevis Observer.