Angela Merkel
Coronavirus: England to lift mask, distancing rules July 19
Prime Minister Boris Johnson on Monday revealed plans to lift most of England’s legal coronavirus restrictions, including face masks and social distancing from July 19, urging personal responsibility rather than government edict. Johnson had initially aimed for a full reopening on June 21, but was forced to push back the date because of a surge in the highly contagious Delta variant. That variant now accounts for nearly all new Covid-19 cases in Britain, and infection rates have soared, sparking concern. But mass vaccinations have stopped a resultant surge in hospital admissions or deaths. “This pandemic is far from over, it certainly won’t be over by the 19th,” warned Johnson. “We must reconcile ourselves, sadly, to more deaths from Covid. “There’s only one reason why we can contemplate g...
French, German leaders urge EU coordination on reopening borders
German Chancellor Angela Merkel and French President Emmanuel Macron called on Friday for European Union countries to coordinate their COVID-19 border reopening policies and guard against new variants of the virus. Macron said EU countries must be careful not to allow new variants to spread, adding that the EU was watching developments in Britain, which has seen a steep rise in the weekly reported cases of the Delta variant. “Some countries have reopened their borders earlier for tourist industry reasons, but we must be careful not to re-import new variants,” he told a joint news conference with Merkel before a working dinner at the chancellery in Berlin. Merkel added: “We can’t act as if the coronavirus is over.” “Caution is still necessary so that we have a summer of many freedoms, if no...
Germany to close most shops from December 16-January 10 – draft proposal
Germany is planning to close most shops from Wednesday until Jan. 10 as it tightens coronavirus restrictions and tries to rein in the spread of the disease, according to a draft government proposal seen by Reuters on Sunday. The draft was prepared head of a meeting later in the day between Chancellor Angela Merkel and state leaders. She has favoured stricter pan-German measures but was previously unable to get agreement from the nation’s 16 states. However, some states have since clamped down on their own, and momentum supporting stricter harmonized measures has been building. The draft proposal would allow only essential shops such as supermarkets and pharmacies, as well as banks, to remain open. Schools will also be basically closed during the period, and employers will be asked to close...
EU criticises ‘hasty’ UK approval of coronavirus vaccine
The European Union criticised Britain’s rapid approval of Pfizer and BioNTech’s COVID-19 vaccine on Wednesday, saying its own procedure was more thorough, after Britain became the first western country to endorse a COVID-19 shot. The move to grant emergency authorisation to the Pfizer/BioNTech vaccine has been seen by many as a political coup for UK Prime Minister Boris Johnson, who has led his country out of the EU and faced criticism for his handling of the pandemic. The decision was made under an ultra-fast, emergency approval process, which allowed the British drugs regulator to temporarily authorise the vaccine only ten days after it began examining data from large-scale trials. In an unusually blunt statement, the European Medicines Agency (EMA), which is in charge of approving COVID...
German police clash with protesters angry at Angela Merkel’s coronavirus law
German police unleashed water cannon and pepper spray in an effort to scatter thousands of protesters angry about a new legal framework for enforcing coronavirus restrictions passed by parliament on Wednesday. The post German police clash with protesters angry at Angela Merkel’s coronavirus law appeared first on TODAY. You Deserve to Make Money Even When you are looking for Dates Online. So we reimagined what a dating should be. It begins with giving you back power. Get to meet Beautiful people, chat and make money in the process. Earn rewards by chatting, sharing photos, blogging and help give users back their fair share of Internet revenue.
Coronavirus vaccine eclipses US elections as economic game-changer
It started on Monday when Pfizer announced that the COVID-19 vaccine it is developing with Germany’s BioNTech proved 90 percent effective in a late-stage trial. The post Coronavirus vaccine eclipses US elections as economic game-changer appeared first on TODAY. You Deserve to Make Money Even When you are looking for Dates Online. So we reimagined what a dating should be. It begins with giving you back power. Get to meet Beautiful people, chat and make money in the process. Earn rewards by chatting, sharing photos, blogging and help give users back their fair share of Internet revenue.
Nigerian doctor named one of TIME’s Most Influential People in the world
TIME named Nigerian physician Tunji Funsho to the 2020 TIME100, its annual list of the 100 most influential people in the world. The full list and related tributes are available now at time.com/time100, and Mr Funsho’s TIME100 profile is available here. The list, now in its seventeenth year, recognizes the activism, innovation and achievement of the world’s most influential individuals. Mr Funsho, a cardiologist based in Lagos, Nigeria, is the first Rotary member to receive this honour for the organisation’s work to eradicate polio, having played an essential role in ensuring Africa’s certification as wild polio-free in August of 2020. “I’m honored to be recognized by TIME for my part in ensuring that no child in Africa will ever again be paralyzed by wild polio, a disease that once disabl...
EU, China to hold talks on blocked investment deal
Agence France-Presse German Chancellor Angela Merkel is to speak with Chinese President Xi Jinping on Monday as part of high-level talks between Beijing and the European Union that should reinvigorate stalled talks on an investment pact. The EU wants to agree on a plan to wrap up the deal, according to a high-ranking EU official, with the goal being to conclude negotiations by the end of the year. The European Commission has been negotiating with China on an investment agreement for more than six years. But Brussels wants further concessions from Beijing on market access and assurances for EU companies. From the EU side, Commission President Ursula von der Leyen and European Council Charles Michel are to participate in the video meeting, with an agenda covering climate change, economic and...
Tehran, Brussels reject Donald Trump’s ‘snapback’ plan for Iran sanctions
Iran and the European Union have both rejected United States President Donald Trump’s plan to trigger the “snapback” mechanism in the Iranian nuclear deal to impose sanctions on Iran. “The Americans got out of the atomic deal in May 2018 and they know very well that the implementation of the snapback is something illegal and, therefore, absolutely unacceptable,’’ Iranian Foreign Minister, Mohammad Javad Zarif, said on Sunday, according to state media. The snapback was granted to the participants in the 2015 Vienna nuclear agreement between major world powers and Iran in the event that Tehran violates it. However, under Trump, the United States withdrew unilaterally from the agreement in 2018. “Since Washington withdrew from the agreement, officially known as the Joint Comprehensive Plan of...
Berlin, Rome, Paris threaten sanctions on states interfering in Libya
France, Italy and Germany are “ready to consider” sanctions on foreign powers violating an arms embargo in Libya, a joint statement by their leaders said Saturday. The statement did not directly name any foreign actors funneling arms to Libya but multiple powers have been sending fighters and weapons, fuelling a bloody proxy war that reflects wider geopolitical rifts and divisions in the Middle East and within NATO. While forces loyal to strongman Khalifa Haftar are backed by Russia, Egypt and the United Arab Emirates, the UN-recognised unity government is fighting back with Turkey’s support. “We … urge all foreign actors to end their increasing interference and to fully respect the arms embargo established by the United Nations Security Council,” the statement said. “We are ready to consi...
Emmanuel Macron, Angela Merkel agree €500 billion coronavirus recovery plan for Europe
France and Germany proposed Monday a 500-billion-euro ($542-billion) fund to finance the recovery of the European Union’s economy from the devastation wrought by the coronavirus crisis. Putting aside past differences and seeking to prove that the Franco-German core of Europe remains intact, President Emmanuel Macron and Chancellor Angela Merkel announced the unprecedented package after talks by video conference. European Central Bank head Christine Lagarde told major European newspapers that “the Franco-German proposals are ambitious, targeted and welcome.” With the European economy facing its biggest challenge since World War II, Macron also acknowledged that the EU had fallen short in its initial response to the virus and needed to coordinate more closely on health. Financed by “borrowin...
La Liga congratulates Bundesliga ahead football league return
The Spanish La Liga has congratulated Germany’s Bundesliga for announcing its imminent return as Spain’s top-flight stepped up its own comeback preparations. The Bundesliga was given the green light to resume later this month when chancellor Angela Merkel made the announcement during a news conference on Wednesday. Strict testing and matchday procedures will be put in place by the German government, with football seemingly set to resume on May 15 having been paused in mid-March. LaLiga outlined its own plan for a staggered return to training on Monday, with teams set to begin individual work this week before gradually moving to group sessions, the ultimate aim being to re-commence the 2019-20 season in June. Spanish clubs began testing players for COVID-19 on Tuesday and LaLiga sees the Bu...
